Meta and TikTok win court challenge over EU fee
A ruling by Europe’s second-highest court has sided with Meta and TikTok, questioning the methodology behind the EU’s Digital Services Act levy.
Europe’s General Court has backed challenges by Meta Platforms and TikTok against an EU supervisory fee imposed under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The companies argued that the levy was calculated unfairly and imposed a disproportionate financial burden.
The supervisory fee, introduced in 2022, requires large platforms to pay 0.05% of their annual global net income to cover monitoring costs. Meta and TikTok said the methodology relied on flawed data, inflated their fees, and even double-counted users.
Their lawyers told the court the process lacked transparency and produced ‘implausible’ results.
Lawyers for the European Commission defended the fee, arguing that group-wide financial resources justified the calculation method. They said the companies had adequate information about how the levy was determined.
The ruling reduces pressure on the two firms as they continue investing in the EU market. A final judgement from the General Court is expected next year and may shape how supervisory costs are applied to other major platforms.
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