Brazil court lifts freeze on SpaceX, Twitter accounts after fine payment.
Brazil’s Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes has decided to lift freezes on Starlink and Twitter bank accounts.
As per a court statement, the move came after the transfer of 18.35 million reais ($3.3 million) from the accounts to Brazil’s national coffers.
The amount covered the total fines imposed amid a dispute between Twitter owner Elon Musk and Moraes. Moraes had ordered access to Twitter blocked in Brazil for failing to comply with orders on blocking accounts spreading fake news.
Musk challenged these orders, calling them censorship. Twitter also didn’t name a local legal representative.
This led to the freezing of SpaceX’s accounts for potential use towards Twitter’s fine payment. However, the court said the issue around lack of legal representation remains unaddressed. Content removals ordered are also yet to be fulfilled.
The access ban on Twitter in Brazil, its sixth largest market, continues despite the fine payment. Musk also owns a 40% stake in SpaceX’s parent company and runs Tesla as CEO.
