Meta's Revised Pay-or-Consent Policy Faces Criticism From EU Consumer Group

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(RTTNews) - The European Consumer Organisation or BEUC, a consumer advocacy group, has urged The European Union authorities to intervene against Meta Platforms. BEUC argues that Meta's revised pay-or-consent policy breaches EU law.

In a statement, BEUC said the new version of Meta's pay-or-consent policy fails to address the fundamental concerns raised by consumer groups regarding the tech giant's initial approach. BEUC also noted that the new policy may be infringing consumer and data protection regulations, as well as the Digital Markets Act.

Meta's original fee-based service was unveiled in November 2023. It required Facebook and Instagram users to either consent to the processing of their personal data for advertising purposes by the company or pay a fee in order not to be shown advertisements based on their personal data.

Meanwhile, the initial version caused an uproar from consumer and other civil society groups.

BEUC and 19 of its members then filed complaints with their consumer protection authorities alleging that Meta was engaging in unfair commercial practices. In February 2024, BEUC and eight of its members filed complaints that the consent Meta was obtaining from its users was likely illegal.

These complaints triggered the opening of investigations by European authorities. In July 2024, the European Commission found that Meta's pay-or-consent policy does not comply with the Digital Markets Act. Further, consumer protection authorities raised concerns, suspecting of breaching EU consumer law.

At the end of 2024, Meta rolled out a second version of its pay-or-consent policy. However, BEUC and its members now consider Meta's newest pay-or-consent policy breaches EU law on numerous counts.

According to consumer groups, the tech major is using misleading practices and unclear terms, and confusing interface design to steer users towards Meta's preferred option. The firm is also not giving to users the possibility to consent fully freely to their data being processed, while the tech giant does not minimise the data it collects from users; and Meta degrades the service to users who do not consent to the use of their personal data.

Agustín Reyna, Director General of the European Consumer Organisation (BEUC), said, "European consumers should not be fooled by the cosmetic changes Meta applies to its one-year-old pay-or consent policy. In our view, the tech giant fails to address the fundamental issue that Facebook and Instagram users are not being presented with a fair choice and is making a weak bid to argue it is complying with EU law while still pushing users towards its behavioural ads system. It is important for consumer and data protection authorities and the European Commission to quickly investigate Meta's latest policy and, if needed, take immediate and effective measures to protect consumers."