Spanish Court orders Meta to pay $552 million to digital media outlets
A Spanish court has ordered Meta, owner of Facebook and Instagram, to pay 479 million euros ($552 million) to 87 Spanish digital media companies for unfair competition practices and violations of EU data protection laws.
The Commercial Court of Madrid ruled that Meta gained a “significant competitive advantage” in Spain’s online advertising market by unlawfully processing user data for behavioral advertising. The compensation reflects damages linked to Meta’s use of personal information on its platforms between 2018 and 2023, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
Meta said it disagrees with the ruling and plans to appeal. A company spokesperson stated:
“This is a baseless claim that lacks any evidence of alleged harm and wilfully ignores how the online advertising industry works. Meta complies with all applicable laws and has provided clear choices, transparent information, and given users a range of tools to control their experience on our services.”
The case is part of a series of European investigations into Meta’s practices. In August 2023, Meta reverted to requiring user consent for behavioral advertising after initially changing its legal basis when the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into effect in 2018. The court estimated that Meta earned at least 5.3 billion euros in profits from advertising during the period and considered the entire amount as obtained in violation of GDPR.
This ruling follows other European fines, including a nearly 800 million euro penalty last year by the European Commission for tying Facebook Marketplace to its main social network and imposing unfair conditions on competitors. Spain’s government has also opened investigations into Meta’s privacy practices, with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announcing scrutiny of potential hidden tracking mechanisms on Android devices.
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