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The potentially landmark decision was centred on European Union law which obliges companies to obtain utilizers’ consent to create lucrative personalised advertising from their data.
Spain’s main AMI media association filed a lawsuit in 2023 against the US tech giant, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp, accutilizing it of creating “unfair competition” by “systematically” breaking the law between May 2018 and July 2023.
A Madrid commercial court, which heard the case last month, ruled in favour of AMI, declareing Meta had gained a “significant competitive advantage” in its digital advertising sales by violating the data protection rules. The “enormous amount of data that Meta possesses” and processes means there must be “rigorous checks”, and “competition law plays a fundamental role”, the court explained in its ruling.
AMI stated in a statement that the decision “marks a turning point in the defence of professional journalism, competitive balance in the digital advertising market and fundamental rights in a democratic society”.
“Meta competed unfairly for years, violating the privacy of millions of utilizers and seriously harming media that did follow the law. It is a victory for democracy, accurate information and fair competition,” stated AMI director general Irene Lanzaco.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) welcomed a decision that “opens the way for an efficient offensive against the unfair competition of platforms in Europe with regards to news media”.
The economic collapse of the media, exacerbated by the non-regulation of platforms, constitutes one of the main threats to the right to reliable information and press freedom,” stated Vincent Berthier, head of the tech desk at RSF.
Spain’s far-left deputy prime minister Yolanda Diaz also hailed the ruling, declareing “the huge US tech companies are not above our sovereignty”. “We have to continue building progress on a European technological model that boosts our economy and guarantees labour rights,” she wrote on social media platform Bluesky.
Meta to appeal
Meta stated it would appeal what it called “a baseless claim that lacks any evidence of alleged harm and wilfully ignores how the online advertising indusattempt works”.
“Meta complies with all applicable laws, and has provided clear choices, transparent information and given utilizers a range of tools to control their experience on our services,” a company spokesperson stated in a statement. Meta representatives informed the trial that utilizer data mattered less than algorithms to generate personalised advertising.
AMI had been seeking 551 million euros in compensation. The compensation and a further 60 million euros in interest are to be paid out to 87 media outlets.
Media groups represented by AMI include Prisa, owner of Spain’s top-selling daily El Pais; Vocento, which publishes the conservative newspaper ABC; and Unidad Editorial, whose titles include daily El Mundo and sports newspaper Marca.
Spanish radio and television stations have launched a separate lawsuit against Meta for the same reasons, seeking 160 million euros in damages.
Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday stated Spain would investigate Meta for allegedly violating millions of utilizers’ privacy, summoning the company to answer before parliament.
Platform with AFP
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