STORY: European regulators have asked Google for more information about its now-scrapped secret advertising partnership with Instagram-parent Meta Platforms.
The Financial Times reported on Tuesday (December 10) that the partnership ignored the search company’s rules on how minors should be treated online.
An FT investigation revealed in August how Google helped Meta in a secret marketing project.
It targeted 13- to 17-year-olds who use YouTube, owned by Google-parent Alphabet, to promote Meta’s Instagram.
The FT says the partnership, which expanded to the U.S. and was to go global, has since been scrapped.
Nonetheless, European Commission officials have been looking into it and have sent collated information to regulators.
They are reportedly weighing on whether to act.
Meta and the European Commission did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Google restricts ad-targeting based on the age, gender or interests of people under 18.
Earlier this year, Meta rolled out enhanced privacy and parental controls for Instagram accounts of users under 18 in a significant overhaul.
It’s under pressure to address growing concerns about the negative effects of social media.