The European Union isn鈥檛 happy with how Meta, particularly on their platforms Facebook and Instagram, is handling advertising. Recently, they鈥檝e launched a new way for users to avoid ads. Users in Europe now have to choose: pay a monthly fee to use these platforms without ads, or agree to let Meta use their personal information for targeted ads.
The EU鈥檚 main concern is that this new model doesn鈥檛 really give users a fair choice. According to the EU, the model doesn鈥檛 let people choose a middle ground where they can use the platforms with minimal data use and fewer personalised ads.
Margrethe Vestager Executive Vice-President in charge of competition policy commented on the purpose for the investigation, saying, 鈥淥ur investigation aims to ensure in markets where gatekeepers like Meta have been accumulating personal data of millions of EU citizens over many years.
鈥淥ur preliminary view is that Meta鈥檚 advertising model fails to comply with the Digital Markets Act. And we want to empower citizens to be able to take control over their own data and choose a less personalised ads experience.鈥�
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What This Means For Meta And Users
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If the EU decides Meta鈥檚 new model really does in fact go against their policies Meta could end up paying a large amount in fines. They could lose up to 10% of their global capital. The EU also says if Meta keeps going against policies, they might have to make bigger changes, like selling parts of their business or being stopped from buying other companies.
Meta disagrees with the EU. They believe their new ad model follows the highest court鈥檚 rules in Europe and fits within the Digital Markets Act. They鈥檙e looking to remain in conversation with the EU to resolve the matter.
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What Exactly Is The Commission Doing To Take Action?
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The EU has been trying to protect online privacy with strict laws like the GDPR and the recently implemented Digital Markets Act. This new dispute with Meta will show the EU and the digital world as a whole, how protected users are under these new policies.
Thierry Breton, Commissioner for Internal Market commented, 鈥淥ur preliminary view is that Meta鈥檚 鈥淧ay or Consent鈥� business model is in breach of the DMA. The DMA is there to give back to the users the power to decide how their data is used and ensure innovative companies can compete on equal footing with tech giants on data access.鈥�
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What Happens To Meta Now?
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The press release from the Commission reads, 鈥淢eta now has the possibility to exercise its rights of defence by examining the documents in the Commission鈥檚 investigation file and replying in writing to the Commission鈥檚 preliminary findings. The Commission will conclude its investigation within 12 months from the opening of proceedings on 25 March 2024.鈥�
Hopefully by next year, a resolution is reached. Until then, Meta continues to operate. Although this is not the first lawsuit around the rights and privacy of its users, Meta needs to make sure they consider these factors to remain a popularly used platform. Users should also keep informed on these new laws and policies, so they understand their rights when it comes to being on the internet.
Not long ago, Meta鈥檚 policy mentioned that users鈥� media will be used to train its AI. Those who did not read their updated policies were not aware of this, and in turn could not opt out. This is another reminder for users who are concerned about how data is used.
