- Spanish media outlets are seeking $US600 million in damages from Meta in an anti-competitive lawsuit, alleging GDPR violations.
- The group claims that Meta has gathered user data without consent, violating EU data protection rules.
- Meta has been working on interpretations of the GDPR to comply with the regulations.
- The Spanish media coalition believes this interpretation could be applied in all regions where Meta operates.
- Meta has introduced an ad-free subscription package for EU users to comply with GDPR, but this is also being challenged for breaching the regulations.
Spanish Media Outlets Seek $600 Million Damages from Meta in Anti-Competitive Lawsuit
Meta is facing a lawsuit from 83 Spanish media outlets, seeking $600 million in damages. The suit alleges that Meta has violated EU data protection rules and aims to dominate the local ads market. The group claims that Meta has gathered user data without consent, which is a violation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) that went into effect in 2018. Meta has been working on different interpretations of the GDPR to comply with the regulations. However, the Spanish media coalition argues that these interpretations could be applied to all regions where Meta operates. Meta has not yet commented on the lawsuit.
E.U. data regulations have caused challenges for website operators, who are required to adhere to the rules around user consent and data permissions. Meta’s latest approach to comply with GDPR is the introduction of an ad-free subscription package for EU users. This allows Meta to maintain its primary ad-serving business model while giving users the option to opt-out by paying for the subscription. However, this approach is also being challenged, as a privacy group has filed a complaint claiming that it violates GDPR rules by forcing users to pay for data privacy. The full implications of Europe’s privacy laws are still being clarified, and this lawsuit will likely lead to further clarification.