Facebook owner Meta faces EU ban on targeted advertising

The European data regulator has agreed to extend a ban imposed by non-EU member Norway on "behavioural advertising" on Facebook and Instagram to cover all 30 countries in the European Union and the European Economic Area, it said on Wednesday.

The ban on such advertising, which targets users by harvesting their data, is a setback for U.S. tech giant Meta Platforms, the owner of the two social media services, which has opposed efforts to curb the practice.

Meta runs the risk of getting fined up to 4% of its global turnover, the Norwegian data regulator said.

The decision by the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) is an instruction to the data regulator of Ireland, where Meta's European headquarters are located, to impose a permanent ban on the company's use of behavioural advertising within two weeks, EDPB said in a statement to Reuters.

"On 27 October, the EDPB adopted an urgent binding decision ... to impose a ban on the processing of personal data for behavioural advertising on the legal bases of contract and legitimate interest across the entire European Economic Area," it said.

Meta on Wednesday said it had already said it would give users in the EU and the EEA the opportunity to consent, and would offer, in November, a subscription model to comply with regulatory requirements.

"EDPB members have been aware of this plan for weeks and we were already fully engaged with them to arrive at a satisfactory outcome for all parties," said a company spokesperson.

"This development unjustifiably ignores that careful and robust regulatory process."