Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, will cease serving political, electoral, and social issue advertisements within the European Union starting in October. This decision aligns wiht the company’s compliance efforts for the Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising (TTPA) regulation, wich takes effect on October 10.

The TTPA mandates that tech companies clearly label political advertisements, disclose the payer and cost, and specify targeted elections. Non-compliance could lead to significant fines, potentially reaching up to 6% of a company’s annual turnover.

In a blog post, Meta stated its belief in the importance of online political advertising for connecting citizens with data about their representatives and providing candidates with a cost-effective way to reach audiences. The company highlighted the authenticity and transparency of its political ad serving methods but expressed concern that the TTPA regulation poses a threat to personalized advertising principles, disregarding the benefits for advertisers and the public.

Meta’s move follows a similar announcement from alphabet, Google’s parent company, which also declared its intention to stop serving political advertising in the EU prior to the TTPA’s implementation.

Furthermore, Meta’s operations in the EU have been impacted by other regulations. In October 2024, the EU’s top court ruled that social media networks are prohibited from retaining user information for indefinite ad targeting. This ruling necessitates adherence to the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) data minimization principles, with violations potentially incurring fines of up to 4% of a company’s global annual turnover.