European publishers urge regulators to scrutinise Meta’s new AI terms

Excerpt: European publishers are calling on EU and UK regulators to intervene over Meta’s updated terms for businesses using its platforms, arguing that the wording could allow website content to be copied without clear consent for AI-related uses. Meta says the changes concern its advertising and business products, while regulators are seeking further clarification.

The European Publishers Council has urged the European Commission to put Meta’s updated terms on hold before they take effect on 30 October 2026, citing concerns about copyright and competition law. The request, made in a letter to EU officials on Monday, calls for an urgent review of the changes and a meeting with the teams of competition chief Teresa Ribera and tech chief Henna Virkkunen.

The dispute centres on terms covering businesses that use Meta’s tools to manage Facebook pages, Instagram accounts and advertising. Publishers fear the wording could permit Meta to copy material from linked websites without offering a clear way to opt out, potentially making editorial content available for use in AI products without licensing agreements.

Meta has disputed that interpretation. After an initial report by Harvard’s Nieman Lab raised concerns about automated website copying and AI training, Meta communications chief Andy Stone said the report was false and that the company had not changed how its web crawlers operate. Meta later revised the terms, removing the word “train”, and said the changes applied to its advertising and business products rather than scraping news websites.

Publishers argue that the revisions do not resolve the issue because the terms themselves still do not provide sufficient guarantees about how their content may be used. They also contend that Meta’s position in social media makes it difficult for businesses that depend on its services to reject the terms.

Regulators in both Europe and the UK are examining the concerns. The European Commission said Meta must comply with EU competition rules and the Digital Markets Act. In the UK, the Competition and Markets Authority has asked Meta to explain the changes and scheduled a meeting with the company. Its chief executive, Sarah Cardell, also identified Meta as a possible candidate for the UK’s new rules for major technology companies.

German newspaper and magazine associations have separately called for the terms to be blocked while they are reviewed, warning that content copied into AI systems may be difficult to recover or remove.

The dispute highlights growing tensions between platform operators and publishers over access to online content, copyright and the terms under which material may be used in AI-related services. Whether Meta’s revised wording addresses publishers’ concerns will now be a question for the company and the regulators examining its obligations.