Meta floats $14 a month ad-free plan for Instagram, Facebook in EU

Meta Platforms is exploring a plan that could make users in the European Union shell out as much as $14 to access ad-free versions of Instagram or Facebook or agree to personalised ads for the free versions, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.

Under the plan, Meta would charge roughly 10 euros ($10.46) a month on a desktop for a Facebook or Instagram account, and about 6 euros for each additional linked account, the report said, citing people familiar with the proposal.

On mobile devices, the price for a single account would jump to roughly 13 euros because Meta would factor in commissions charged by Apple's and Google's app stores, WSJ said.

The social media company was fined 390 million euros earlier this year by Ireland's Data Privacy Commissioner and told it cannot use the so-called "contract" legal basis to send users ads based on their online activity.

Meta subsequently said it intended to ask users in the EU for their consent before allowing businesses to target advertising in order to address a number of evolving regulatory requirements in the region.

Meta has now told European regulators it hopes to roll out the ad-free plan, which it calls subscription no ads (SNA), in the coming months for users in Europe, the report said.

A Meta spokesman told the Journal that the company believes in "free services which are supported by personalised ads" but is exploring "options to ensure we comply with evolving regulatory requirements".

Meta, Ireland's Data Protection Commission and the European Commission did not respond to Reuters' requests for comment outside regular business hours.

The New York Times first reported that Meta was considering paid versions of Facebook and Instagram with no ads for users residing in the EU, without giving details about how much they would cost.