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Meta to Offer Ad-Free Facebook and Instagram Subscriptions in Europe

Meta to Offer Ad-Free Facebook and Instagram Subscriptions in Europe

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Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of social media giants Facebook and Instagram, is set to introduce a new subscription service in Europe, offering users the option to enjoy ad-free access to these platforms. The move comes as Meta seeks to adapt to the ever-evolving landscape of data privacy regulations and user expectations in the European Union (EU), European Economic Area (EEA), and Switzerland.

Meta to Offer Ad-Free Facebook and Instagram Subscriptions in Europe

Image Source: businesspost.ie

Starting from November, European users will have the opportunity to subscribe to ad-free versions of Facebook and Instagram. There will be two pricing options available: a web-based subscription at €9.99 per month and a mobile subscription via Apple Inc.’s and Android’s operating systems, priced at €12.99 per month. This initiative marks an important step for Meta in providing its users with a choice to experience their favorite social media platforms in a new, uninterrupted way.

Meta Responds to EU Data Privacy Regulations with Launch of Ad-Free Subscriptions

The decision to introduce these subscription services is in response to the escalating regulations surrounding the collection and utilization of user data in Europe. A key factor influencing this development was the ruling by the EU Court of Justice in July, which emphasized the importance of companies providing alternative, privacy-respecting services, “if necessary for an appropriate fee.” In line with this decision, Meta is now offering its European user base a paid alternative that excludes ads.

Meta intends to maintain its existing ad-supported services in these regions at no extra cost to users. This means that individuals who choose not to subscribe will still have access to the familiar ad-supported versions of Facebook and Instagram. The company emphasizes that this move is about offering greater choice to users, allowing them to decide how they prefer to engage with these platforms.

Ad-free subscriptions have become an appealing option for users who value their online privacy and want to have a more streamlined and uninterrupted social media experience. By introducing these subscription plans, Meta is addressing the demand for enhanced privacy options and demonstrating its commitment to adapt to the changing regulatory environment in Europe.

Also Read: 5 Halloween Tech Ideas to Take Your Spooky Celebrations to the Next Level

This announcement follows Meta’s broader efforts to enhance data privacy, including its plans to move user data from Ireland to the United States, which is driven by the EU’s concerns about data transfers. The introduction of ad-free subscriptions is yet another step in the company’s strategy to navigate the complex web of privacy regulations while ensuring a positive user experience.

As the world of online privacy and data protection continues to evolve, Meta’s decision to offer ad-free subscriptions in Europe is a proactive response to the shifting landscape. It represents a crucial step in providing users with a choice that aligns with their personal preferences and respect for their digital privacy. The subscription services set to launch in November signal Meta’s dedication to maintaining a strong presence in the European market and ensuring the satisfaction of its diverse user base.

Eduardo Saverin

Inspiration Journey of New Age Entrepreneur Eduardo Saverin

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Investor Eduardo Saverin is the new-age internet entrepreneur among the five founding partners of the popular social networking site Facebook, alongside Dustin Moskovitz, Andrew McCollum, Chris Hughes, and the website’s inventor Mark Zuckerberg. 

Eduardo is considered one of the leaders in the online entrepreneurship sector with an estimated worth of nine billion dollars, which is made up of a staggering 100 million stocks of Facebook.

Eduardo Saverin
Image Source: independent.co.uk

In his junior year at Harvard, Eduardo encountered Mark. To build his proposal for a social media platform and online guide for students at Harvard, Mark required funding.

Eduardo decided to help Mark because he thought he had a great concept that was worthwhile to invest in.

Mark never considered Facebook to be a means of making money. Furthermore, Mark, the sole goal was to develop a cutting-edge online platform that could unite individuals.

The co-founder of Facebook sought to grow the company after successfully establishing it at Harvard. So, they decided to relocate to Palo Alto, California. Additionally, in 2004 Saverin traveled to New York to do an apprenticeship at Lehman Brothers.

Also Read: Dustin Moskovitz: Facebook Co-founder turned Billionaire

Throughout his internship, Saverin was expected to focus on raising money, establishing a firm, and developing a business plan. Saverin thus became Facebook’s first CFO.

Additionally, it was discovered that Eduardo Saverin had advertised illegally on Facebook outside Mark’s knowing. He even created the online employment board known as Joboozle.

As a result, Saverin and Mark had a very difficult time getting along, and after Eduardo was unable to provide Facebook with the necessary cash, Mark was forced to look for new investors.

Sean replaced Eduardo to raise money for Facebook. Another financier who met Mark via Sean, Peter Thiel, assisted Mark in severing ties with Eduardo.

Mark created an entirely new company called Facebook which was a Delaware Corporation and then gave its new stocks to everybody except Saverin to cut him off.

The contract that Mark became Facebook’s sole director was one that Eduardo was required to sign.

Aporta was founded together by Eduardo and a Mexican journalist named Aldo in 2010. It functions as a charitable website gateway.

Saverin started his venture capital business, B Capital, in 2015 and makes investments in India & Southeast Asia.

He executed agreements in Asia totalling over 150 million dollars in 2016, including those for the company Ninja Van.

Facebook

Why are Facebook and Instagram ending news access in Canada?

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Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, plans to block access to news content on its platforms for all users in Canada when a new law requiring internet giants to pay news publishers comes into effect.

The Canadian parliament passed “Bill C-18,” known as the Online News Act, which mandates platforms like Facebook and Google to negotiate commercial deals and compensate news publishers for their content. Both Meta and Google had previously warned that they would restrict access to news articles if the legislation was passed without amendments.

Facebook
Image Source: dailytimes.com.pk

Facebook argues that news articles constitute less than 3% of the content on users’ feeds and claims that news has no economic value for the company since its users do not primarily rely on the platform for news consumption. They also highlight the benefits journalists receive from posting their work on the social media platform.

Google, on the other hand, contends that Canadian law is broader than similar laws in Australia and Europe, as it places a monetary value on news story links displayed in search results and can potentially apply to outlets that do not produce news.

Google proposed revisions to the bill, suggesting that payment should be based on the display of news content rather than links and that only businesses producing news and adhering to journalistic standards should be eligible for payments.

Also Read: Can the iPhone 16 be cheaper than the iPhone 15 Pro?

In Australia, both Google and Facebook initially threatened to limit their services when similar laws were enacted in 2021. However, they reached agreements with Australian media companies after amendments were made to the legislation. As a result, Meta and Google have been paying around A$200 million ($134 million) annually to Australian news outlets.

Lawmakers in Meta’s home state of California and the U.S. Congress are pushing for similar rules, as they see a need to empower news organizations to negotiate collectively with platforms like Google and Facebook.

Meta generates 40% of its revenue from the United States and considers Australia and Canada among its significant markets. If Meta fails to obtain exemptions or modify the rules in Canada, it could potentially face similar challenges in the United States.

In 2022, U.S. lawmakers introduced a revised version of a bill aimed at facilitating collective negotiations between news organizations and platforms. Additionally, the New Zealand government announced its intention to introduce a law requiring major online companies to compensate local media companies for the appearance of their news content on digital feeds.

Meta

Meta releases AI model that can identify items within images

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On Wednesday, Meta, the owner of Facebook, released a collection of image annotations that it claimed was the biggest ever of its kind combined with a model based on AI that can identify specific items within an image. The final dataset contains over 1.1 billion masks of segmentation from over 11 million licenced and privacy-preserving photos.

Meta
Image Source: tribune.com.pk

The organization’s research department said in a blog article that the company’s Segment Anything Model, or SAM, could recognise objects in pictures and videos even when it hadn’t seen those objects during training.

Also Read: Google Workers in London stage walkout over job cuts

SAM allows users to select objects by clicking on them or by entering text commands. Typing the word “cat” in one demonstration caused the tool to generate boxes around each of the multiple cats in a picture.

Meta noted, “Meta stated, “Our objective was to build a foundation model for image segmentation… a promotable model that is trained on a variety of data and can adapt to specific tasks, analogous to the use of prompting in models of natural language processing.”

However, in contrast to images, videos, and text, the segmentation data required to train such a model is not easily accessible online or anywhere else. So, with Segment Anything, we set out to simultaneously create a segmentation dataset of unprecedented scale and develop a general, prompt segmentation model.”

Since Microsoft-backed OpenAI’s ChatGPT chatbot became an internet hit in the fall, sparking a surge of investments and a race to dominate the area, large tech firms have been bragging about their artificial intelligence advances.

Though it hasn’t yet made a product available, Meta has teased a number of features that use the generative AI made famous by ChatGPT, which generates entirely new material rather than just recognising or categorising data like other AI.

Examples include a programme that creates surrealist films from word cues and another that turns prose into pictures for children’s books.

Also Read: UBS to cut up to 30% of the global workforce

According to Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg, adding these generative AI “creative aids” to Meta’s products is a top focus for this year. Internally, Meta does make use of SAM-like technologies for tasks including tagging photographs, removing objectionable information, and choosing which articles to promote to Facebook and Instagram users.

The corporation said that the introduction of SAM will increase access to that kind of technology. A non-commercial licence will be required to download the SAM model and dataset. Users who upload their own photographs to an associated prototype must also consent to use them strictly for study.

Trump

Trump returns to YouTube and Facebook after a two-year ban

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The Facebook and YouTube accounts of the previous president of the United States Donald Trump were recovered on Friday after they were disabled just after his followers’ attack on January 6, 2021, on Congress.

Ever since his supporters attacked the US Capitol since Congress was declaring Joe Biden’s triumph in the 2020 election for president, Trump’s YouTube was blocked for breaching its policy against incitement to violence.

Trump
Image Source: investing.com

Trump declared his entrance on the Facebook and Youtube platforms once again by posting “I’m Back” on Friday.

Also Read: New Zealand to ban TikTok on devices linked to parliament

A clip on his page also depicted Trump’s election as president in opposition to Hillary Clinton in 2016. The display then tends to fade toward a ‘Trump 2024’ screen.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Trump could be seen saying in the video.

Source: indiatoday.in

“Starting today, the Donald J. Trump channel is no longer restricted and can upload new content,” YouTube said in a statement.

“We carefully evaluated the continued risk of real-world violence, while balancing the chance for voters to hear equally from major national candidates in the run up to an election.”

Source: france24.com

Republican politicians slammed Trump’s removal from Facebook, whereas a community of congressional Democrats pressured parent company Meta to prolong the ban to maintain threatening and baseless electoral rejection material off from its platform.

In January, both Instagram and Facebook declared that Trump’s accounts would be reinstated with new guardrails.

Trump’s lawyer, Scott Gast, wrote to the corporation, which is centered in the Bay Area of California, asserting this had significantly altered and hindered political discussion.

Following the violent protest, the former president’s Twitter account was also banned and at that time it had 87 million followers, forcing him to interact via his site Truth Social, which seems to have very few than five million followers.

Elon Musk, the new acquirer of Twitter, restored Trump’s account last November, just days ever since Trump declared his second White House bid, although he has yet to tweet on the platform.

Meta’s decision was commended by the American Civil Liberties Union, one that has filed over 400 court actions in opposition to Trump.

Also Read: Twitch CEO Emmett Shear to step down

“Like it or not, President Trump is one of the country’s leading political figures and the public has a strong interest in hearing his speech,” executive director Anthony Romero said in a statement.

“Indeed, some of Trump’s most offensive social media posts ended up being critical evidence in lawsuits filed against him and his administration.”

Source: france24.com
facebook

Facebook Bug Allows 2FA Bypass Via Instagram

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A flaw in Meta’s latest centralized system for users to maintain their Facebook and Instagram account logins might have permitted cybercriminals to disable a user account’s two-factor authentication merely by knowing one‘s mobile number.

facebook
Image Source: technologistan.pk

Gtm Mänôz who is a Nepalese security researcher discovered that Meta did not impose a limit on how many attempts whenever a user inputs the two-factor code utilized to log into one‘s accounts on the latest Meta Accounts Center, which allows users to connect all of their Meta accounts, which include Instagram and Facebook accounts.

A hacker would access the centralized accounts center, enter the victim’s mobile number, connect that phone number to their own Fb or Instagram account, and afterward using brute force can guess the two-factor authentication code. This was the most important step since there was no constraint to how many tries somebody could make.

Also Read: Why major advertisers are leaving Twitter?

When the attacker correctly entered the code, the victim’s phone number was connected to the hacker’s Facebook account. A successful attack still would lead to Meta sending a notification to the victim stating that their two-factor authentication had been disabled because their phone number had been linked to a different account.

“Basically the highest impact here was revoking anyone’s SMS-based 2FA just knowing the phone number,” Mänôz told TechCrunch.

Source: techcrunch.com

Provided that the target no longer had two-factor activated, a hacker might possibly attempt to obtain the victim’s Facebook account simply by spoofing the password.

Also Read: Will the metaverse be good for society?

Last year, Mänôz discovered the flaw in the Meta Accounts Center & revealed the issue to the firm in mid-September. A few days back, Meta resolved the bug and provided 27,200 USD to Mänôz for disclosing it.

“If the phone number was fully confirmed and 2FA enabled in Facebook, then the 2FA will be turned off or disabled from victim’s account,” Mänôz wrote. “And, if the phone number was partially confirmed (that means only used for 2FA), it will revoke the 2FA, and also the phone number will be removed from [the] victim’s account.”

Source: darkreading.com

According to Meta spokesperson Gabby Curtis, the login system was still in the early stages of a limited public test at the time of the flaw. Curtis also stated that once the bug was revealed, Meta carried out an investigation and discovered no indications of mistreatment in the wild, as well as no sudden increase in the utilization of that particular function, indicating that nobody was misusing it.