Paid versions of Facebook and Instagram are coming soon

SheetThe New York TimesMeta will soon launch a paid version of Facebook and Instagram for users in the European Union (EU), a region that has strict regulations on the policies and services of technology companies. The move is aimed at easing recent EU privacy laws and policies targeting social media platforms.

According to Meta, paid versions of Facebook and Instagram will give people in the EU an option to increase privacy and change the social media experience.

Currently, Meta has not made any comments on this issue.

For nearly 20 years, Meta has maintained its core business focused on providing free social networking services to users and generating revenue from advertising. However, the increasing number of advertisements has inevitably made users feel annoyed.

Offering a paid option could help Meta address some regulatory concerns about its current business model, which relies on analyzing user data to target ads. However, it’s unclear how many users will actually pay for the service.

While this isn’t the first time a social network has offered a paid service, it’s a big move considering Facebook’s current size. As of August 11, Facebook had more than 2.9 billion monthly active users. Instagram, by comparison, had 2.35 billion total users.

Meta will of course continue to offer the ad-supported, free versions of Facebook and Instagram as usual in the EU. It’s not yet clear how much a paid subscription will cost or when the company will officially launch it.