Meta will launch subscriptions for no ads in the UK over the coming weeks, allowing users to opt out of ads on Facebook and Instagram for a fee.
UK users over 18 will be notified of the new option. European users already enjoy a similar no ads service for a fee of €5.99 on the web a month or €7.99 on iOS/Android, while those in the UK will pay £2.99/month on the web or £3.99/month on iOS and Android, for the first Meta account.
According to Meta, the fee is higher on iOS and Android because of the additional fees charged by Apple and Google through their purchasing policies.
A smaller fee of £2/month on the web or £3/month on iOS and Android will apply for each additional account listed in a user’s Account Center.
Meta says that the change comes in response to recent regulatory guidance from the ICO. The move will offer UK residents a choice regarding the use of their data in personalised advertising.
However, unlike in the EU, UK users won’t have an option to opt out of the ad-free service but see "less personalised" adverts. This feature was introduced after the European Commission claimed that the "binary" advertising choice presented to users violates its laws.
“This approach and outcome sets the UK apart from the EU, where we have been engaged in similar discussions with regulators. EU regulators continue to overreach by requiring us to provide a less personalised ads experience that goes beyond what the law requires, creating a worse experience for users and businesses,” says Meta.
Meta praised the UK’s “pro-growth and pro-innovation regulatory environment”, saying that in 2024 alone, Meta’s advertising technologies supported £65 billion in economic activity and more than 357,000 jobs across the UK.
The pay-or-consent model is increasingly being adopted by digital platforms as a way to monetize users who decline to be tracked across their services. In the UK, news publishers are some of the adopters, offering users either to "accept all" tracking cookies or "reject and pay".
In the EU, this has already created issues for Meta, with the European Commission handing it a 200-million-euro fine for breaching the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
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