Meta accused of failing to comply with EU technology regulations

On Monday, EU antitrust authorities accused Meta Platforms of failing to comply with groundbreaking technology regulations, criticizing the company’s advertising model that requires payment or consent.

The US tech giant launched an ad-free subscription service in Europe for Facebook and Instagram last November, saying users who consent to tracking will receive a free service funded by ad revenue.

The European Commission, which serves as the EU’s competition enforcer, said binary selection violated the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which aims to curb the power of Big Tech, after sending preliminary findings to Meta.

It said binary choice forces users to consent to the combination of their personal data and does not provide them with a less personalized but equivalent version of Meta’s social networks.

“We want to enable citizens to take control of their own data and choose less personalized advertising,” EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager said in a statement.

Reuters was the first to report that the EU’s competition enforcement authority would accuse Meta of non-compliance with the Digital Markets Act (DMA).

The accusation against Meta comes a week after the EU watchdog first accused Apple under the DMA of failing to comply with the new rule.