- Meta responds to DMA fine with new data collection policy for EU customers
- Both personalized and generic ad options are now available
- The European Commission will continue to monitor the adoption
Meta is expected to offer European Facebook and Instagram users a reduced data sharing option for less personalized ads, starting in January 2026, marking a satisfactory resolution to a months-long DMA battle with the European Commission.
Under the new European model, users can choose between full data sharing for highly personalized ads and reduced data sharing for more generic ads.
The update would replace the old “consent or pay” model that required users to either agree to data tracking and personalized ads or pay for ad-free access.
This news comes around six months after Meta was fined 200 million euros (in April 2025) for this affair. The amount covered affected users between March 2024 (when the DMA obligations became legally binding) and November 2024 (when the updated advertising model was introduced to allow less data sharing).
“Enabling free choice for businesses and consumers is at the heart of the rules set out in the Digital Markets Act. This includes ensuring that citizens have full control over when and how their data is used online, and that businesses can communicate freely with their own customers,” Vice President for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy Henna Virkkunen wrote at the time.
An updated model was approved after revisions, and the EU is expected to continue monitoring its compliance. “Once implemented, the Commission will seek feedback and evidence from Meta and other relevant stakeholders on the impact and adoption of this new advertising model,” the European Commission wrote.
Without access to highly personal information, Meta’s ads will rely on contextual targeting, which means back-end engineering work to collect different types of data through other means.
For advertisers, this could mean they see lower returns on investment as targeting becomes less effective among users who have opted out.
“EU users must have a full and effective choice, which is their right under the DMA,” commented the Commission.
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