EU accuses Meta of violating digital competition rules

Facebook parent Meta faces allegations from the European Commission for violating new digital competition rules with its advertising practices. The Commission claims Meta's "pay or consent" model, where users must choose between paying for an ad-free experience or accepting personalized ads, violates user rights by coercing consent to personal data use without offering an equivalent alternative.

If the Commission's preliminary findings hold, Meta could be fined up to 10% of its global annual revenue, totaling $13.5 billion based on 2023 figures. Meta disputes these accusations, setting the stage for potential legal battles amid heightened scrutiny under the EU's Digital Markets Act.

This scrutiny follows similar actions against Apple and investigations into Google's parent company, Alphabet, under the same regulatory framework.