The EU is calling for changes to Facebook and Instagram due to addiction concerns
This is reported by Reuters, citing the European Commission.
The European Commission has stated that Meta failed to carry out a proper assessment of the risks associated with the design of Facebook and Instagram.
These include highly personalised recommendations, autoplay videos, the endless feed, and the Reels and Stories formats. According to the regulator, these features may encourage users to use social media excessively or even compulsively.
The EU is paying particular attention to the risks to children and teenagers. The Commission believes that such mechanisms may affect users’ physical and mental health, and that Meta has not sufficiently mitigated these risks.
What changes is the EU demanding?
The European Commission believes that Meta must change the design of Facebook and Instagram.
Among the requirements are disabling autoplay for videos and the infinite feed by default. The regulator also expects more effective mandatory breaks from using the apps and changes to the recommendation system.
The EU’s aim is to ensure that algorithms are less focused on maximising user retention on the platform.
Why Meta’s current tools were deemed inadequate
The European Commission has criticised the existing time-management mechanisms in Meta’s apps.
According to the regulator, users can easily dismiss reminders to take a break. Parental control tools, in the Commission’s view, require too much time, effort and technical knowledge, and are therefore not sufficiently effective.
Meta’s response
Meta disagrees with the European Commission’s conclusions.
A company spokesperson, Ben Walters, stated that since the start of the investigation, Meta has introduced Teen Accounts — special accounts for teenagers with additional safety settings.
The company also states that parents can block access to Instagram at night and limit daily usage of the app to 15 minutes. Meta promises to continue its dialogue with European regulators.
The European Commission’s findings are currently preliminary. Meta may still submit its defence before the Commission reaches a final decision.
If the infringements are confirmed, the company could face a fine of up to 6 per cent of its global annual turnover. This mechanism is provided for under the EU Digital Services Act for large online platforms.
Separately, the European Commission is investigating the so-called ‘rabbit hole’ effect on Facebook and Instagram. This refers to a situation where algorithms gradually lead users to an ever-increasing amount of similar content, causing them to spend more time on the platform.
In April, the European Commission also provisionally found that Meta may have breached the DSA by failing to take sufficient measures to prevent children under the age of 13 from accessing Facebook and Instagram.
The allegations against Meta form part of a broader EU policy on protecting children in the digital environment. Brussels had previously raised similar concerns with TikTok regarding its endless feed, autoplay, push notifications and personalised recommendations.
The EU is now effectively demanding that the largest social media platforms change not only their moderation rules but also the very architecture of their platforms if it encourages addictive behaviour among users.
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