Meta has updated its commercial terms of use to permit the use of web scrapers to collect content from websites associated with business accounts on its platforms. This update, effective October 30, includes news publishers that utilize business accounts for managing Facebook pages, Messenger accounts, Instagram profiles, or WhatsApp channels. Legal experts indicate that these new terms could allow Meta to scrape content from news sites and use it to train its AI products.
The updated terms state that Meta can use automated software to access and collect content from domains associated with business accounts. This includes the ability to pull updates from these domains and use the content for various purposes, including the development and improvement of Meta products. James Grimmelmann, a professor of digital and information law at Cornell Law School, noted that this could allow Meta to train AI on content from news publishers' sites, potentially using that content in competition with the publishers.
Currently, there is no option for business accounts to opt out of these new terms. If users do not agree to the updated terms, they are instructed to stop using Meta's products for business purposes. Grimmelmann highlighted that publishers must either trust Meta's intentions or cease using business accounts altogether.
Meta has not provided specific answers to questions regarding the implications of these updated terms. A spokesperson stated that the new language consolidates previously scattered terms regarding crawling and does not change how Meta crawls publishers. However, legal experts warn that the new terms might override existing instructions that block Meta's crawlers.
The update also allows Meta to create 'test credentials' to scrape websites, which could potentially enable Meta to bypass registration walls on publisher sites. Benjamin Sobel, a law professor at the University of Wisconsin, compared this approach to antitrust law concepts, suggesting that access to Meta's products is tied to acceptance of the scraping permissions.
This update follows Meta's introduction of its paid subscription service, Meta One, which restricts the number of external links that certain accounts can post without a subscription. Some news publishers are reportedly exempt from this link limit. Beale, a user who relies on Facebook for audience engagement, expressed frustration over the new terms and is considering shutting down his accounts before the deadline.
Meta's new commercial terms raise significant concerns for news publishers regarding content scraping and the implications for their businesses.