Zuckerberg ponders launching paid versions of Instagram and Facebook in the European Union

2023-09-04 12:11:25

Like (almost) any empire of digital communication, the business of Meta and its applications facebook and instagram it relies heavily on revenue generated from displaying advertising to its users. However, the company’s business model could be about to change. At least for some Internet users.

As reported ‘The New York Times‘, Meta is studying the possibility of launching paid versions of Facebook and Instagram that would be available only to users established in the European Union. These would not have ads, according to people familiar with the plan consulted by the US media.

At the moment, it is not clear what would be the price that users would have to pay in case the company owned by Mark Zuckerberg decided to bet on this new subscription model. What is certain is that, should it arrive, Meta would continue to allow access to its tools for free as before. The commitment made by advertising is key for the firm’s business to continue to be buoyant. Even more, if you want to maintain an advantage in users (and in income) with TikTok.

The commitment to a different type of accounts, in which the user pays a little less with his data, literally scratching his pocket, can help the company’s business to be less affected in the EU. Brussels is promoting several ambitious regulations that seek to more effectively control large companies that operate on the Internet. For example, thanks to the new Digital Services Law, which came into force throughout the community territory a little over a week ago, Facebook and Instagram cannot show targeted advertising based on their data to minors.

This rule will be accompanied next year by the Digital Markets Law, which promises to significantly transform the operation of the digital platforms we use. This regulation is also expected to have a profound effect on Apple’s business, which will be forced to open its devices to other application stores other than the official one, the App Store.