Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has been ordered by a Spanish court to pay 479 million euros ($552 million) to 87 local digital media outlets for unfair competition practices and violations of European Union data protection rules.
The ruling, handed down Thursday by Madrid’s Commercial Court, comes as part of the European Union’s ongoing effort to regulate the activities of large U.S.-based technology firms. Meta has announced that it intends to appeal the decision.
The compensation relates to Meta’s use of personal data for behavioral advertising, which the court concluded gave the company a “significant competitive advantage” in Spain’s online advertising market.
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“This is a baseless claim that lacks any evidence of alleged harm and wilfully ignores how the online advertising industry works,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement sent to Reuters.
“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,” a company spokesperson said, describing the case as a “baseless claim” that ignores the realities of the online advertising industry.
The case centers on Meta’s legal basis for processing personal data following the introduction of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in May 2018. Initially, Meta relied on user consent, but it later switched to “necessity for the performance of a contract” to justify behavioral advertising. Regulators later ruled that this basis was inadequate. In August 2023, Meta reverted to relying on consent.
During the five-year period when Meta shifted its legal justification, the court found that the company earned at least 5.3 billion euros in advertising revenue, which it treated as revenue obtained in violation of GDPR rules. The judgment also noted that Meta’s practices violated Spain’s antitrust law, as the company gained an unfair competitive edge over other online platforms.
Part of Broader EU Regulatory Push
This ruling is part of a wider wave of regulatory enforcement by the European Union against major tech companies. Last year, the European Commission fined Meta nearly 800 million euros for tying its Facebook Marketplace service to Facebook’s main social network and imposing unfair trading conditions on rival classified ad providers. Spain’s government has also targeted Meta over alleged privacy violations, including a mechanism that tracked the web activity of Android users. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said a parliamentary committee would investigate the matter further. Meta has pledged to cooperate with Spanish authorities.
A similar complaint is under review in France, signaling that scrutiny of Meta and other large U.S. tech companies is spreading across multiple EU member states. Observers note that these enforcement actions are part of a broader effort to tighten oversight of American tech giants, particularly in areas of data privacy, competition, and the use of behavioral advertising.
The ruling has significant implications for Meta’s European operations, both in terms of immediate financial liabilities and ongoing compliance obligations. The compensation, if upheld, would mark one of the largest fines imposed on Meta in Europe for privacy and competition issues. Analysts say it could also influence how other technology companies approach data processing, consent mechanisms, and online advertising practices in the EU.
U.S. tech companies and EU regulators seem entangled in a regulatory faceoff; its end is not yet in sight. Business leaders such as Tesla CEO Elon Musk have warned that such regulations stifle innovation and economic growth.