If you use Facebook or Instagram you could soon pay for their services. According to The Wall Street Journal, there will soon be the option to subscribe to avoid advertising on these social media platforms.
According to the newspaper, the company intends to charge users approximately 10 euros (about 180 pesos) per month to use Instagram or Facebook without ads in their desktop browsers.
For mobile devices, prices would be a little higher, around 13 euros per month, as Meta must take into account the commissions that the Apple and Google app stores charge for in-app payments, as reported by the newspaper.
Meta apparently plans to launch these paid subscriptions in the coming months as a way to comply with the rules of data privacy of the European Union that threaten to affect its highly profitable business model, which is based on showing personalized ads to users.
This option that Meta would offer users would be to choose between continuing to use the platforms with ads or paying for the version without ads, as reported by the WSJ.
The initiative, called ad-free subscription, aims to adapt to the new European Union Digital Markets Law that requires the user to give consent before displaying personalized ads.
Will you have to pay to use Facebook or Instagram?
For now, this measure could be applied only and exclusively in Europe, but if successful, it could reach Mexico and Latin America. as has happened with other services such as Twitter Blue or Meta Verified.
“Meta believes in the value of free services supported by personalized ads,” the company said in a statement to IGN. “However, we continue to explore options to ensure we comply with changing regulatory requirements. “We have nothing more to share at this time.”
Meta’s revenue depends heavily on advertising. Of its second-quarter revenue: Of the $32 billion it generated, $31.5 billion came from advertising.
In July, the European Union’s top court ruled that Meta must obtain users’ consent before showing them ads. This decision jeopardizes the company’s ability to generate revenue by personalizing ads based on users’ online interests and digital activity.
It is not yet clear whether European Union regulators will approve Meta’s plan or insist that the company offer cheaper versions. The newspaper notes that one of the issues facing regulators is whether the proposed rates will be too expensive for the majority of people who do not want to be targeted by targeted ads.
Meta is not the first to do something similar, as in recent years, social media apps have looked for new ways to generate revenue outside of advertising by offering the ability to remove ads through a monthly subscription.
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