European Commission Publishes Preliminary Findings on Meta’s ‘Pay or Consent’ Model

On July 1, 2024, the European Commission published its preliminary findings on Meta’s ‘pay or consent’ advertising model. This publication follows the opening of a formal investigation into Meta’s compliance with Article 5(2) of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) on March 25, 2024.
The Commission reminded that, pursuant to Article 5(2) of the DMA, gatekeeping organizations must obtain users’ consent to combine their personal data between designated core platform services and other services. If a user refuses consent, they should have access to a less personalized but equivalent alternative.
Commission’s Findings
The Commission held a preliminary view that Meta’s ‘pay or consent’ model is not compliant with Article 5(2) of the DMA, because:
  • it does not allow users to opt for a service that uses less of their personal data but is otherwise equivalent to the ‘personalized ads’ based experience; and
  • it does not allow users to freely consent to the combination of their personal data.
The Commission noted that to ensure compliance with the DMA, users who do not consent should still have access to an equivalent service that uses less of their personal data.
Next Steps
The Commission stated that Meta must now reply in writing to the Commission’s preliminary findings, and the investigation will conclude 12 months from its opening on March 25, 2024. Fines of up to 10% of a gatekeeping organization’s total worldwide turnover may be imposed for non-compliance with the DMA, with fines up to 20% in case of repeated infringements.

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