EU Charges Meta with DSA Breaches Over Addictive Instagram Features; Stock Up 4.7%

On July 10 the European Commission issued preliminary findings that Meta may be breaching the Digital Services Act by failing to protect users from addictive design features such as autoplay, infinite scroll and personalized recommendations on Instagram and Facebook. The probe, which could result in fines of up to 6% of global revenue per platform, caps a week of mounting regulatory pressure. The sequence began July 6 when India ordered immediate removal of child-abuse ads on Instagram serving its 480-million-user market and Australia questioned a 79% drop in hateful-content enforcement after Meta’s January 2025 moderation cuts. On July 8 France’s competition authority ordered Meta to restart publisher payment talks and submit a detailed plan within 15 days, citing possible abuse of dominance.