Meta will cease political ads in European Union by fall, blaming bloc's new rules
Source: NY Daily News/AP
UPDATED: July 25, 2025 at 6:29 PM EDT
LONDON (AP) — Facebook and Instagram owner Meta said Friday that it will stop all political advertising in the European Union by October, blaming legal uncertainty over new rules designed to increase transparency in election campaigns. The social media giant said in a blog post that it will no longer allow ads for political, electoral and social issues on its platforms, which also include Threads, starting in early October.
The company said it was making the decision because of the 27-nation EU’s “unworkable” Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising regulations. The rules introduce “significant operational challenges and legal uncertainties,” Meta said.
It’s not the first Big Tech company to make such a move. Google said last year that it would stop serving EU users political ads before the rules take effect, in an announcement that cited similar reasons.
Under the regulations, which are set to take effect on Oct. 10, platforms will have to label political ads, disclosing who paid for them, and what campaign, referendum or legislative process they’re connected to. Ads will have to be preserved in a database, and they can only be targeted to users under strict conditions.
Read more: https://www.nydailynews.com/2025/07/25/meta-eu-political-ads/
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