On October 2, 2025, the Amsterdam District Court ruled in a dispute between Meta and Bits of Freedom about the way Instagram and Facebook are organized. This is one of the first times that the Digital Services Act (DSA) has been applied in civil proceedings in the Netherlands.
Instagram and Facebook recommendation system
Instagram and Facebook users were shown "recommended posts" on their timeline by default, based on user profiles. Previously this was not the case: users used to see only chronological updates from people or organizations that they followed. Under the DSA, there must be an option to choose between a timeline or “for you” page based on chronology or recommended posts based on profiling. The option to choose between these two was already available on Instagram and Facebook. However, this choice was not permanent, and the timeline preference was automatically reset to the system that recommends a timeline based on profiling as soon as a user reopened the app or website.
Court ruling
Essentially, the question was whether offering a non-permanent choice constitutes a "prohibited dark pattern" and is unlawful under Article 25 of the DSA. The court concludes that this is the case with automatic downshifting.
The Amsterdam District Court ruled that Meta is in violation of the DSA due to the way it allows users to opt for a non-profiled recommendation system. The court ordered Meta to implement several changes to protect the autonomy and freedom of choice of users of Instagram and Facebook platforms.
The court has ordered Meta to make the choice for a recommendation system indicated by users of the Instagram and Facebook website and apps permanent, and to make the choice for non-profiled recommendation systems directly and easily accessible on the apps and websites.
Appeal
Meta had initially lodged an appeal but withdrew the vast majority of its appeal at the last minute. Meta's violations of the DSA are no longer being addressed in the appeal, which now focuses solely on other (procedural) issues. At the time of writing this blog, no ruling has yet been made on the appeal.
As this is a national procedure, the changes are currently only being implemented in the Netherlands. This is remarkable, given that the ruling is based on European law that applies in all countries of the European Union. As a result of the court's ruling, Meta must now provide a permanent choice with regard to the timeline. The permanent choice of a chronological timeline will therefore be returned for now.
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