Differences between the EU and the US
As usual, this information should be treated with caution as it does not come from an official source. Anyway, it should be noted that the differences between Europe and the United States in terms of tech regulation are becoming more and more important.
For example, this year Meta was fined 380 million euros (for Facebook and Instagram) in Ireland following a complaint filed by the NGO NOYB. This accuses Meta of circumventing the GDPR. “Meta attempted to circumvent the consent requirement for online tracking and advertising by claiming that advertising is part of a ‘service’ it is contractually obligated to provide to users,” the NGO explained in a statement.
Otherwise, recently Meta has also had to change the way its platforms operate to comply with the Digital Services Act, or DSA. In Europe, Facebook and Instagram users have the option to deactivate personalized recommendations for the content of these social networks (based on analysis of personal information). “For example, on Facebook and Instagram, users will only be able to view the stories and videos of the people they follow, in chronological order from newest to oldest,” the group explains.
Also, Threads, the new social network competitor to Twitter, is not yet available in the European Union as Meta wants to make sure the service complies with new legislation.
