EU Probes Alleged Google-Meta Ad Deal Aimed at Teens [Video]

European regulators are seeking information from Alphabet’s (GOOGL) Google about an alleged secret advertising partnership the search giant had with Instagram parent Meta Platforms (META), in a probe that may lead to a formal investigation.

A spokesperson at the European Commission confirmed a Financial Times report that it was seeking more information on a deal, since cancelled, between the companies that targeted Instagram advertisements to teenagers on YouTube, circumventing Google’s rules barring personalized ads to those under 18.

The Commission is the European Union’s (EU)  enforcement arm. The EU’s Digital Services Act prohibits targeted advertising based on profiling using the personal data of minors.

“We can confirm that the Commission, on 18 September, has indeed sent an RFI (requests for information) to Google on the platform’s advertising practices,” Thomas Regnier, a spokesperson at the Commission, said in a statement to Investopedia. “Google has responded to our RFI. The Commission is currently assessing the replies …