Meta delays commercial terms update after backlash
Ars Technica: “Does Meta think we can’t read?” Meta abandons sketchy commercial terms update.
After weeks of backlash—and a failed attempt to quell it—Meta has indefinitely delayed plans to update its commercial terms and require Meta Business account users to allow extensive AI training on external websites linked on Facebook. "We're pausing the changes as we continue to engage with stakeholders and take our time to get this right. In the meantime, our existing terms remain in effect," a Meta spokesperson told Reuters. Soon after Meta notified business account holders of the up
Get smart on it
Meta has indefinitely delayed plans to update its commercial terms and require business account users to allow AI training on external websites linked on Facebook. Legal experts warned that the vague language in the proposed changes could allow Meta to ignore web scraping preferences and crawl vast amounts of off-site content for AI training, potentially letting the company avoid millions in licensing fees to publishers. The delay came after weeks of backlash from publishers, courts in multiple countries that issued injunctions blocking the terms, and regulatory investigations questioning whether Meta was exploiting its dominant position to seize AI training data. Meta stated it would consult further with industry groups, though critics noted the company has not included specific language about respecting robots.txt preferences in its revised terms.
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