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A £2.3 billion ($2.8 billion) consumer lawsuit against Facebook over the terms of access to the social media platform has been deemed unfeasible by a lawyer representing Meta Platforms Inc. The lawyer, Marie Demetriou, stated that there are “fundamental” flaws with putting a value on consumer data, which is at the heart of the case.
Background on the Facebook Lawsuit
A group of 44 million consumers is seeking verification of a class action against Facebook, alleging that the company abused its market dominance by imposing unfair terms on users in exchange for access to its platform. The consumers claim that Facebook profited unfairly from users giving away their data. The case has been brought forward by Dr. Liza Lovdahl Gormsen, a competition researcher and lawyer.
However, lawyers for Meta have challenged the lawsuit, stating that the case is so “large and complex” that there is no way to answer difficult questions of quantification and loss at trial. The lawsuit also assumes that a reduction in the tech giant’s profits will exclusively benefit individual users, ignoring the fact that reduced profits could result in Facebook reducing costs for other platform users, such as advertisers.
Lawyers Argue on the Value of Consumer Data
The main argument in the case is whether Facebook abused its dominance in the market by extracting users’ data without giving them a choice of whether to share their information or how much of it. Lawyers for Gormsen argue that this resulted in excess profits for Facebook, while lawyers for Meta argue that data means something different to every user, making it difficult to put a value on the information.
Furthermore, the lawyers for Meta argue that there are “fundamental” flaws with putting a value on consumer data, echoing the concerns expressed by Judge Marcus Smith on Monday that quantifying personal information was “subjective.”
The Competition Appeal Tribunal
The Competition Appeal Tribunal will hear new arguments on how to quantify the value of data and how consumers should be compensated for giving up data that Facebook uses for advertising. All users of Facebook between at least 2015 and 2019 living in Britain will automatically become part of the group of claimants if Gormsen’s request for a class action is approved unless they explicitly opt-out.
Facebook has argued that the claims are meritless and do not raise competition issues. The tribunal will be comprised of Judge Marcus Smith and members Derek Ridyard and Timothy Sawyer.
Conclusion
The £2.3 billion ($2.8 billion) lawsuit against Facebook over the terms of access to the social media platform has sparked a heated debate over the value of consumer data. Lawyers for Meta have argued that there are “fundamental” flaws with putting a value on the data, while lawyers for Gormsen claim that Facebook profited unfairly by extracting users’ data without giving them a choice. The Competition Appeal Tribunal will hear new arguments on the matter in the coming days, with the outcome expected to have far-reaching implications for the tech giant and consumers alike.
Keywords: Lawyers, Meta Platforms Inc, competition tribunal, consumer lawsuit, £2.3 billion, $2.8 billion, Facebook, market dominance, users, platform, trial, flaws, value, data, Marie Demetriou KC, Judge Marcus Smith, quantifying, personal information, large, complex, blueprint, Thorny issues, reduction, costs, advertisers, Dr. Liza Lovdahl Gormsen, competition researcher, class, excess profits, extracting, choice, sharing, information, British, claimants, tribunal, arguments, compensated, advertising, meritless, competition issues, Derek Ridyard, Timothy Sawyer, Ronit Kreisberger KC, Nikolaus Grubeck, Monckton Chambers, Sarah Ford KC, Brick Court Chambers, Greg Adey, One Essex Court, Katherine Vernon, Leo Kitchen, Trevor Soames, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP, David Bailey, Ben Williams KC, 4 New Square, Stephen Wisking, Kim Dietzel, Miriam Everett, Herbert Smith Freehills LLP, Dr. Liza Lovdahl Gormsen v. Meta Platforms Inc., case number 1433/7/7/22.
