A Madrid court orders Meta to pay €479 million to Spanish media for unfair competition after violating EU data rules between 2018 and 2023
MADRID: A Spanish commercial court has ordered Meta to pay €479 million to local media outlets for unfair competition practices.
The ruling also requires the Facebook owner to pay an additional €60 million in interest payments.
Spain’s main media association AMI filed the lawsuit in 2023, accusing Meta of systematically breaking EU data protection laws between May 2018 and July 2023.
EU regulations require companies to obtain user consent before creating personalised advertising from their data.
The Madrid court found Meta gained a “significant competitive advantage” in digital advertising by violating these data protection rules.
AMI had originally sought €551 million in compensation from the US tech giant.
“This isn’t a case that affects only AMI’s outlets, it has implications for media worldwide,” AMI director general Irene Lanzaco told reporters.
“What’s at stake is the very survival of news media, which is being threatened by the predatory behaviour of a platform like Meta.”
Meta executives argued during the trial that user data mattered less than algorithms for generating personalised advertising.
The company’s lawyer, Javier de Carvajal, urged the court to dismiss the compensation claims, calling them “unsupported by evidence.”
The compensation will be distributed among 87 media outlets represented by AMI.
Affected media groups include Prisa, owner of Spain’s top-selling daily El Pais, and Vocento, publisher of conservative daily ABC.
Unidad Editorial, whose titles include daily El Mundo, is also among the recipients.
Spanish radio and television stations have launched a separate lawsuit against Meta seeking €160 million in damages.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced on Wednesday that Spain would investigate Meta for allegedly violating millions of users’ privacy.
The US tech giant has been summoned to answer before parliament regarding these privacy concerns. – AFP
