Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:FB) may make subscribers in the European Union pay for ad-free access to Facebook and Instagram, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. Short-form video sharing app TikTok is already trialing a new ad-free subscription for users, creating a potential new source of revenue.
In Meta's case, the move would be the company’s latest effort to address EU rules around users’ personal data.
The tech giant is mulling a plan that would see it charging about €10, or roughly $10.50, a month for accounts on the social media sites, the WSJ reported, citing unnamed sources. For ad-free access to both accounts, users would pay an additional €6.
Accounts linked to mobile devices would attract a higher charge of roughly €13 ($13.6) to allow for commissions charged by Apple and Google’s app stores, per the report.
While supporting free services supported by personalized ads, Meta said the company is looking at options to ensure that it complies with evolving regulatory requirements.
The company has come increasingly under the scrutiny of EU regulators and was slapped with a €1.2 billion fine by the Irish Data Protection Authority (IE DPA) in May for violating the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
The authority ruled that Meta was unlawfully transferring European users’ data to its US-based servers and taking no sufficient measures to ensure user privacy.
The company has until the end of November to comply with a ruling by a Luxembourg court which found that Facebook cannot justify the use of personal data to target consumers with ads until it has their consent, the Financial Times reported, with the court suggesting that companies should explore a subscription model.
Android Authority reported on Monday that some users of the TikTok app have been offered the plan for a monthly fee of $4.99. The service is being offered as part of a limited test in a single, unnamed English-speaking market outside of the US.
~Updated with detail of TikTok's ad-free subscription trial~
Contact the author at stephen.gunnion@proactiveinvestors.com