The European Commission is opening up about how the big tech world continues to target minors through advertising campaigns.
Two tech giants accused of this unlawful behavior include Google and Meta who probed the companies to find some shocking revelations. This includes how they both had undercover ad partnerships that targeted ads on Instagram at minors using YouTube.
The news was first highlighted by the Financial Times which says the EU is yet to open up another formal investigation on this front. However, it’s in the process of collecting all the necessary data needed including internal discussions, emails, and any presentations on this front.
Google already gathered the aforementioned data during its own internal investigations that were dubbed Tangerine Owl. As per the article, revelations from August highlighted how Google Workplace made use of workarounds for advertisements that were intentionally designed for adults 18 years and above.
This is serious news as Google intended to ban all such ads targeting the youth. As per employees on Google, Meta was forced to push ads at another unknown ground under the 18-year age bracket.
Both tech giants reportedly teamed up together with the likes of media agency Spark Foundry. They rolled out a pilot advertising program in places like Canada which went on to target the US. The firms put a stop to the plan to enable expansion beyond both these nations and to entail other Meta apps after this report was leaked.
Clearly, it’s not too surprising in the sense that both these firms were in hot water for advertising practices before. Two years back in 2022, both of them were the target of the EC’s antitrust investigations. This was partnered with assistance from the British Competition and Market Authority but both these entities soon shut the cases.
Image: DIW
Read next: Google Unveils Top Trending Searches for 2024 and Here’s What Made the List
Two tech giants accused of this unlawful behavior include Google and Meta who probed the companies to find some shocking revelations. This includes how they both had undercover ad partnerships that targeted ads on Instagram at minors using YouTube.
The news was first highlighted by the Financial Times which says the EU is yet to open up another formal investigation on this front. However, it’s in the process of collecting all the necessary data needed including internal discussions, emails, and any presentations on this front.
Google already gathered the aforementioned data during its own internal investigations that were dubbed Tangerine Owl. As per the article, revelations from August highlighted how Google Workplace made use of workarounds for advertisements that were intentionally designed for adults 18 years and above.
This is serious news as Google intended to ban all such ads targeting the youth. As per employees on Google, Meta was forced to push ads at another unknown ground under the 18-year age bracket.
Both tech giants reportedly teamed up together with the likes of media agency Spark Foundry. They rolled out a pilot advertising program in places like Canada which went on to target the US. The firms put a stop to the plan to enable expansion beyond both these nations and to entail other Meta apps after this report was leaked.
Clearly, it’s not too surprising in the sense that both these firms were in hot water for advertising practices before. Two years back in 2022, both of them were the target of the EC’s antitrust investigations. This was partnered with assistance from the British Competition and Market Authority but both these entities soon shut the cases.
Read next: Google Unveils Top Trending Searches for 2024 and Here’s What Made the List