European Union accuses Facebook owner Meta of breaking digital rules with paid ad-free option

LONDON (AP) — European Union regulators accused social media company Meta Platforms on Monday of breaching the bloc’s new digital competition rulebook by forcing Facebook and Instagram users to choose between seeing ads or paying to avoid them.

Meta has been giving European users the option since November of paying for ad-free versions of Facebook and Instagram as a way to comply with the continent’s strict data privacy rules.

Desktop browser users can pay about 10 euros ($10.50)...