How Will the EU DMA ‘Pay or Consent’ Decision Impact Meta’s Business?
The European Commission published the text of its April Decision on Meta’s “pay or consent” scheme as implemented until November 2024. Since then, Meta has made significant changes to Facebook and Instagram in the EU, introducing a free “less-personalized ads” option. Yet the Commission maintains “that it is possible that Meta’s non-compliance is ongoing.”
I examine the Commission’s reasoning for why Meta may still be non-compliant and explore potential solutions for Meta. I also analyze the Commission’s striking approach: its stated willingness to ignore the economic pain DMA enforcement imposes on gatekeepers. This stance affects all gatekeepers, including Amazon, Apple, Google, and Microsoft. A separate piece will provide my legal analysis of the Decision’s other aspects.
The headline from April focused on Meta’s EUR 200M fine—far below the maximum EUR 15.2B (10% of global turnover). This relatively modest penalty seems designed to deflect attention from the Decision’s prohibitionist and economically uninformed legal reasoning, perhaps hoping a lower sum will prevent the U.S. administration from viewing this as a tax or tariff.