Facebook’s parent company, Meta Platforms is yet to be to have a big trial in Spain in October 2025. The case has derivations from a lawsuit involving more than eighty media companies that accused Meta of practicing unfair competition in the advertising business. It is noted that the action is estimated at 551 million euros, or 582 million US dollars.
Meta to Face $582 Million Lawsuit in Spain Over Advertising Practices
According to the 15th Madrid commercial court the Spanish legal proceedings are set for the 1st and 2nd of October. This case arose following complaints from a group of media firms, most of which are members of the AMI media association which represents 87 Spanish media firms.
The main issues of the lawsuit include allegations that Meta had violated the EU data protection laws. It is claimed that the violations were committed between 2018 and 2023 and therefore leading to the legal action by the media organisations.
The case illustrates emerging rivalry between digital behemoths, including Meta, and legacy media organizations, including in advertising. Spanish media companies have complained to the European Commission claiming that Meta has violated the fair competition act in its market.
Meta’s legal advisors will dispute that claim but were the verdict was to go against Meta, then it would have a serious disruptive effect of Meta’s operations in Europe. The trial may also be instrumental in determining other related law suits involving the tech companies and media outfits throughout the continent.
Spanish Newspapers Accuse Meta of Unfair Competition in Ad Targeting
Spanish newspapers have lamented saying that through the gathering of personal details such as likes, contacts and photos from Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, Meta has an upper hand in today’s cut throat advertising. They explain that by Meta having collected a massive amount of user data, it is able to systematize the provision of targeted advertisements, which the media companies claim is an unfair business practice.
As stated by the complainants major Spanish newspaper publishers; Prisa and Vocento, Meta’s current practices amount to anticompetitive distortions. Prisa has the newspaper el Pais while vocent is the parent company of ABC Newspaper. Despite this, these publishers complain that Meta’s use of personal data for targeting their adverts puts pressure on more conventional advertising-dependent media houses.
Nevertheless, the company has recently faced some serious allegations, and, as per now, a Meta spokesperson remains silent about the lawsuit. The company’s lawyers should be prepared to fiercely defend against the allegations saying that legal data-driven advertising is the company’s cornerstone business model.
The case could have potential impacts to Meta’s operations in Europe especially as it come under pressure from new regulations under European Union on collection and use of data, and anti-trust laws. The company currently faces the possible outcomes of the complainants receiving punitive damages, or the change of the company’s advertisement policies.
It is part of the campaign launched by various European media companies that have sought to fight for fair competitives in the digital advertising space. The more media organizations develop competition to the technological goliaths, this could become an important test case for the future of digital ad practices in the EU.
Spanish Broadcasters Join Lawsuit Against Meta Over Unfair Competition
Apart from newspapers, two associations of Spanish broadcasters, UTECA and AERC, have filed a case against Meta. It also filed an individual action for euro 160m in damages for alleged unfair competition by the tech giant in the same fashion as the media companies. This new lawsuit only increases a growing tide of legal scrutiny directed at Meta’s ads-targeting and content-sharing business models.
The legal actions in Spain which depict traditional companies have been embarking on lawsuits against the tech giants. Some legacy media organisations have asked that firms like Meta should pay them for the content that they use and share online. These are suits are ongoing attempts to continue to protect revenues that have become increasingly endangered by these platforms.
Nonetheless, these legal actions at times all have not upheld the rights of the media companies. To counter similar forces in nations like Canada or Australia, Meta has gone as far as restricting the ability of users to share a news article at all. Such actions have caused massive debates and prompts crucial issues as to how media revenue must be defended while offering people the right to receive any information.
Still, Meta has been refining its content approach elsewhere at the same time. In recent months, the company has been slowing down the promotion of news and political content on the platforms. Meta explained that news links can only take a tiny part of a user’s feed, proving that their focus on news sharing is not as important as before.
This dynamic shows that there has always constant struggle between new technology companies and old media firms. Meta’s future ways of addressing news continue evolving while legal cases in Spain and other countries will determine the further course of the relationships between digital and traditional media and shovel the decisions of courts and people.
