EU Warns Meta Against Paywalling Privacy and Targeted Ads

The EU's Data Protection Board has advised large online platforms, including Meta, against offering users a binary choice between paying for a service and consenting to their personal data being used for targeted advertising, stating that it does not comply with the requirements for valid consent. This comes after complaints and requests from various data protection authorities and consumer organizations regarding Meta's "pay or okay" model, which allows users to pay to stop personalized ads. Meta argues that its subscription model for ad-free services complies with EU laws and plans to continue engaging with regulators. However, complaints have been filed alleging that Meta's model breaches data protection principles under the GDPR.