Facebook, a social media platform with millions of users worldwide, is once again in the news after allegations of data leaks several times in the past. The ongoing investigation and ongoing court hearing regarding Facebook's barter data exchange with Netflix has shocked Facebook users. Court documents revealed that Facebook shared users' private messages with third-party apps. As part of the barter data exchange, it gave video streaming platform Netflix access to users' private messages. According to a report on Gizmodo website, these revelations have come at a time when Meta has decided to shut down the streaming business. The antitrust lawsuit against Meta alleges that its decision to shut down the streaming business was influenced by advertising partner Netflix. According to court documents, Netflix and Facebook had a good relationship and this was because Netflix was spending huge amounts of money on advertising on Facebook. For this reason, it prevented Facebook from making a big claim in the streaming video market. With agreements signed in 2013 and beyond, Facebook gave Netflix access to users' private messages, in exchange for Netflix giving Facebook its users' data.
Netflix increased advertising spending
Netflix has increased advertising spending on Facebook, reaching an estimated $150 million annually in early 2019. It is also alleged that Netflix reached an agreement with Facebook during this period to increase access to data analytics. It is noteworthy that Netflix founder and former CEO Reed Hastings resigned from the board of Facebook in 2019. Meta responded to the allegations, saying that its contracts and relationship with Netflix are common industry practice. However, Meta declined to comment on whether competition with Netflix played a role in the decision to discontinue Facebook Watch. In a statement to Gizmodo, a spokesperson for Meta expressed confidence that the lawsuit's claims are baseless.