Spanish media companies are suing Meta for unfair advertising practices

A group of 83 Spanish media companies are filing a lawsuit against Facebook parent company Meta for unfair competition in the advertising market. The lawsuit involves 550 million euros.

AMI, the group representing the 83 media companies, says Meta breached EU data protection rules between 2018 and 2023. That reports Reuters. The media companies claim that Meta’s “massive” and “systematic” use of personal data from Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp users has given the tech giant an unfair advantage in serving personalized ads.

The media companies also state that Meta’s advertisements use personal data obtained from users without explicit consent. The plaintiffs, including El País publisher Prisa and ABC owner Vocento, argue that this violates the GDPR, which has been in force in the EU since May 2018.