Platforms should not confront users with 'binary choice' over personal data use

The EU’s Data Protection Board (EDPB) has told large online platforms they should not offer users a binary choice between paying for a service and consenting to their personal data being used to provide targeted advertising.

In October last year, the social media giant said it would be possible to pay Meta to stop Instagram or Facebook feeds of personalized ads and prevent it from using personal data for marketing for users in the EU, EEA, or Switzerland. Meta then announced a subscription model of €9.99/month on the web or €12.99/month on iOS and Android for users who did not want their personal data used for targeted advertising.

At the time, Felix Mikolasch, data protection lawyer at noyb, said: “EU law requires that consent is the genuine free will of the user. Contrary to this law, Meta charges a ‘privacy fee’ of up to €250 per year if anyone dares to exercise their fundamental right to data protection.”

  • archomrade [he/him]@midwest.socialEnglish
    0·
    7 months ago

    The thing that jumps out to me here is that mobile data is apparently worth 20% more than web data and that in no way surprises me but very much pisses me off

    • Marighost@lemm.eeEnglish
      0·
      7 months ago

      It may be higher for two reasons. First thing I thought of, they’re accounting for Play Store/iOS fees. Second, I guarantee there’s loads more mobile users they can make a few more pennies off of.

      • archomrade [he/him]@midwest.socialEnglish
        0·
        7 months ago

        As far as I know, the service fees only apply to apps that charge for their app or have in-app purchases. sorry, I misunderstood what you meant

        I assume that difference has more to do with the value of ads being higher on a smartphone given the abundance of data that isn’t available via browser.

    • PM_Your_Nudes_Please@lemmy.worldEnglish
      0·
      7 months ago

      Pretty sure it’s because both Apple and Google shave a commission off the top of any in-app purchases. So if you buy a subscription in the app, Meta would actually make less money. So to compensate, they increase the price for in-app purchases.

      Alternatively, it could be because adblockers are less prevalent on mobile. Even casual desktop users have begun using adblockers, but very few people block ads on mobile.