Brussels demanded this Friday from the American multinational Meta additional information in relation to the subscription it offers on social networks on Facebook and Instagram in exchange for not including advertising on them. The European Commission thus continues the investigation that began in October 2023 to find out to what extent the company complies with the digital services law of the European Union, which forces large internet companies to be more transparent about the content they show.
And specifically, regarding online advertising. The regulations require platforms not to show advertisements based on users’ political and religious beliefs or based on their gender and sexual orientation, as well as to give them the option of not offering them recommended content. The company must respond to the European Commission on March 24.
Lawsuit filed by consumers
The petition to the company comes one day after the lawsuit that eight consumer associations from European countries filed against Meta, before the national data protection authorities, considering that the company uses more personal information than permitted by the EU and the use to display personalized ads.
The Community Executive also requested from Meta more information about the measures it is carrying out to eliminate terrorist content from its platforms, especially that related to the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7; to protect minors; and to avoid misinformation in electoral processes, four months before the elections to the European Parliament. Brussels gave him until March 15 to respond to these other questions.
Based on the responses, the Commission will assess next steps, which could involve formally opening infringement proceedings under the DSA and even imposing fines for incorrect, incomplete or misleading information.
