In addition to the European Commission's view that MetaThere are situations where users are tempted to choose free plansThe Consumer Protection Cooperation Network (CPC Network), a network of national bodies that implement EU consumer protection law, also recognized MetaPossible breach of consumer law.
The Network of Consumer Protection Partnerships believes that Meta's approach in Europe of only offering users the option of agreeing to the use of their personal data in exchange for free service or paying to use service features is actually misleading, especially since the service description does not clearly explain that personal data will be used for advertising if users choose to use the service for free.
On the other hand, the Consumer Protection Partnership Network also pointed out that even if users choose to pay, advertisements will still appear when they interact with other users on the service platform and share content, which means that even if they pay, they may still be disturbed by advertisements.
Meta is also clearly "pressuring" users who have been using Facebook and Instagram for a long time for free, without giving them enough time to consider, and even preventing them from accessing their personal account content before making a decision. This may cause more users to be forced to hastily decide to hand over their personal privacy information or choose to pay for use in a short period of time, fearing that they may not be able to continue using their personal accounts. They believe that Meta is deliberately using this to influence users' decisions on how to use its service platform.
In the European Commission's previous preliminary investigation into Meta, it was found that Meta only provided polarized options, which led many users to choose to pay to use Meta's Facebook, Instagram and other services in order to avoid charges. This induced users to choose free plans and then obtained their personal privacy information. Therefore, Meta was preliminarily determined to have violated the Digital Markets Act.
In the European Commission's view, Meta should offer two options: one for full privacy and the other for paid use. It should also provide some privacy and personalized advertising options to give users more choices, rather than setting a relatively high payment threshold to induce most users to use the service for free.
Similar to Apple's preliminary ruling, Meta has until the end of March 2025 to make adjustments. Otherwise, if the European Commission finds Meta has violated the Digital Markets Directive, it will face a fine of 3% of its annual revenue.
