Volkswacht Bodensee - Meta to allow European users to share less data: EU

The European commission said the US tech giant undertook to make the option available from January to settle a legal dispute over its "pay or consent" system that saw it hit with a 200-million-euro ($233 million) fine.

"Meta will give users the effective choice between: consenting to share all their data and seeing fully personalised advertising, and opting to share less personal data for an experience with more limited personalised advertising," the commission said.

It was the "first time" that such a choice was offered on Meta's social networks, the body that acts as the 27-nation bloc's digital and antitrust regulator said.

The move followed talks with the company, which was found in breach of digital competition rules over its "pay for privacy" system earlier this year.

Under the system, which has been vehemently criticised by rights groups, users have to pay to avoid data collection, or agree to share their data with Facebook and Instagram to keep using the platforms for free.

A commission probe concluded in April that Meta did not provide users with a less personalised but equivalent version of the platforms.

Meta was fined and warned it could face daily penalties under the landmark Digital Markets Act (DMA) unless it complied with the law.

The company had started giving European users the possibility of seeing less personalised ads already in November last year. But this did not spare it the fine.

A commission spokesman declined to detail how the new offering improved on that but added that while the firm's undertaking did not automatically close the case against it, it represented a "very good step forward" and "positive news" for EU consumers.

Brussels would now monitor its "effective implementation" and "seek feedback and evidence from Meta and other relevant stakeholders on the impact and uptake of this new ad model".

Acknowledging the commission's statement, Meta said: "Personalized ads are vital for Europe's economy—last year, Meta’s ads were linked to €213 billion in economic activity and supported 1.44 million jobs across the EU."

T.Zimmermann--VB