Meta, the parent company of Facebook, will stop selling and displaying political ads in the EU from October onwards.
This decision comes in response to the Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising (TTPA) legislation in the EU, which requires extensive transparency for political ads, including clear labeling, sponsor disclosure, and consent for data usage.
The new rules have raised concerns over the complexity of the law and its impact on personalized advertising. Meta highlighted the significant challenges and legal uncertainties posed by the TTPA in a recent blog post.
Threat to Personalized Advertising
Meta has voiced worries about the restrictive nature of the TTPA, stating that it will limit the ability of political and social issue advertisers to connect with their target audiences effectively. This may result in viewers seeing less relevant ads on the platform.
The company emphasized that despite engaging with policymakers to address these issues, it was left with no choice but to either modify its services to comply with the law or to discontinue political, electoral, and social issue ads in the EU.
Legal Mandates and Restrictions
The TTPA, sanctioned by the European Commission, imposes stringent transparency requirements on political advertisers. Advertisers must clearly label their ads, disclose sponsors, election details, costs, and targeting methods. Furthermore, the law stipulates that data collected for political ads can only be utilized with explicit user consent and prohibits the use of sensitive personal information for profiling purposes.
Google, a major player in the advertising industry, has also announced its decision to stop selling political ads in the EU due to the operational challenges and legal uncertainties introduced by the TTPA.
