- Majestic Jaiswal 141 not out as India pile pain on Australia
- Giannis, Lillard lead Bucks over Hornets as Spurs beat Warriors
- Juan Mata agent slammed as 'cowardly' by angry A-League coach
- Marta inspires Orlando Pride to NWSL title
- Palestinian pottery sees revival in war-ravaged Gaza
- Main points of the $300 billion climate deal
- Robertson wants policy change for overseas-based All Blacks
- Israel retreat helps rescuers heal from October 7 attack
- Afghan women turn to entrepreneurship under Taliban
- Mounting economic costs of India's killer smog
- At climate talks, painstaking diplomacy and then anger
- Uruguayans head to polls with left hoping for comeback
- Trump's mass deportation plan could end up hurting economic growth
- Iran director in exile says 'bittersweet' to rep Germany at Oscars
- US consumers to bargain hunt in annual 'Black Friday' spree
- Cheers, angst as US nuclear plant Three Mile Island to reopen
- Scientists seek miracle pill to stop methane cow burps
- Australia ditches plans to fine tech giants for misinformation
- Developing nations slam 'paltry' $300 bn climate deal
- Red Bulls win 'Hudson River derby' to reach conference final
- Neuville wins world title after Tanak crashes at Rally Japan
- Neuville wins world rally title after Tanak crashes in Japan
- Colapinto cleared for Las Vegas GP despite heavy crash
- 'Smiling One' Amorim vows he has ruthless streak Man Utd need
- Marseille down Lens to stay in touch with Ligue 1 leaders, Lyon draw
- New Zealand beat 'proud' Italy in Cane's Test farewell
- Barca collapse in Celta draw without Yamal, Simeone hits milestone
- Thailand's Jeeno equals Yin for lead at LPGA Tour Championship
- New Zealand beat Italy in Cane's Test farewell
- Marseille down Lens to stay in touch with Ligue 1 leaders, Lyon held to draw
- Liga leaders Barca suffer late collapse in Celta draw
- Retegui fires Atalanta top of Serie A ahead of Inter
- Greaves hits maiden Test century as West Indies dominate Bangladesh
- Venezuela opposition calls for mass anti-Maduro protest on Dec. 1
- 'Fragile' Man City in uncharted territory, admits Guardiola
- Erasmus hails Springbok strength in depth after thrashing Wales
- Postecoglou calls for consistent Spurs after Man City rout
- 'We've never lived this situation' admits Guardiola
- Lebanon says more than 55 killed in Israeli strikes
- 'We've never lived this situation' admits Guardiola as Man City lose five in a row
- Under-fire Gatland 'motivated' to continue as Wales coach
- South Africa send Wales crashing to 87-year low in Test rout
- Spurs condemn Man City to fifth straight defeat as Arsenal win
- Defeated Leipzig lose more ground on Bayern, Frankfurt go second
- South Africa put Wales to the sword to wrap up season
- Spurs thrash Man City 4-0 to end 52-match unbeaten home run
- Defeated Leipzig lose more ground on Bayern
- Venezuela opposition calls for 'enormous' anti-Maduro protest
- Inter take Serie A lead as AC Milan and Juve bore in stalemate
- England captain George wary of Jones's influence on Japan
Free Facebook in EU with less targeted ads
Under pressure by EU regulators, Meta said Tuesday it was offering non-paying users of its Facebook and Instagram services in the bloc the ability to do so with less targeted ads, as well as cutting its subscription rates.
The move follows the European Commission accusing the US social media giant in July of breaching the bloc's digital rules with its "pay or consent" system that meant users had to pay to avoid data collection, or agree to share their data with Facebook and Instagram to keep using the platforms for free.
"Today, we are announcing important changes to Facebook and Instagram in the EU... people who choose to continue using our services for free, they’ll now also be able to choose to see less personalised ads," Meta said in a statement on its site.
Meta said that over the coming weeks users in the EU would have the choice of seeing "less personalised ads" when they use Facebook and Instagram.
"This less personalised ads option relies on less data, so we’ll show ads based only on context -– what a person sees in a particular session on Facebook and Instagram –- and a minimal set of data points including a person’s age, location, gender, and how a person engages with ads," said Meta.
Meta launched last year its paid ad-free service or required users to consent to data collection and targeted ads to comply with the EU's new Digital Markets Act.
However Brussels objected to the pay for privacy model and Meta faced a fine of up to 10 percent of its global revenue if it did not find an alternative to address the concerns of EU regulators.
Meta also announced a 40 percent reduction in the ad-free subscription on smartphones to 7.99 euros ($8.50) per month. Web subscriptions drop to 5.99 euros per month.
"Less invasive ads are great news," said Anu Talus, the head of the European Data Protection Board, which ensures consistent application of the EU's data protection regulations.
It had also criticised Meta's pay for privacy model, calling data privacy a fundamental right that shouldn't become a paid option for social media users.
"While the solution still needs to be assessed, we welcome the fact that an important platform announces that it will offer a new choice for free with less detailed profiling for advertising," Talus said in a statement posted on her LinkedIn page.
Last month the EU's top court ruled that Meta must limit the use of personal data for targeted advertising.
L.Janezki--BTB