Meta, the tech giant behind Facebook and Instagram, is reportedly facing new antitrust charges from the European Union and the threat of steep daily fines due to its refusal to further alter its contentious “pay-or-consent” subscription policy, Reuters reported.

The model, launched in the EU in November 2023, gives users a choice: either pay to use Meta platforms without ads and data tracking or use them for free while consenting to targeted advertising. The initial mobile fee was set at €12.99 (approximately $15) per month.

European regulators argue that this structure contravenes the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which mandates that dominant digital firms—or “gatekeepers”—must offer users services that limit data collection without sacrificing quality. Meta was already fined €200 million ($234 million) earlier this year for failing to comply.

Although Meta reduced the fee and scaled back its use of personal data earlier in 2024, the European Commission found these changes inadequate. The Commission has since warned the company that it could face daily fines of up to 5% of its global annual turnover—an amount that could reach over $22 million a day based on Meta’s 2024 revenue of $164.5 billion.

According to sources close to the matter, Meta has indicated it will not make additional modifications unless there is a significant shift in regulatory expectations. While the company has declined to comment publicly, it has previously argued that its approach complies with EU rules and that the Commission is unfairly singling it out.

This dispute highlights growing tensions between U.S. tech firms and European lawmakers as the EU tightens its oversight of digital platforms under sweeping new regulations aimed at protecting consumer data and curbing monopolistic behavior.