Updated terms appear to grant Meta crawling rights over publisher sites tied to its business platforms, raising fresh AI training-data fights.
Meta's revised business terms give it permission to crawl and scrape websites 'associated' with companies using its platforms, including publishers, according to a Nieman Lab report. The language was not prominently disclosed as an AI training provision.
The move follows a pattern of platforms quietly expanding data rights through terms-of-service updates rather than negotiated licensing deals, a tactic publishers have fought against with other AI labs.
Publishers and any business running a Meta-linked storefront or page now face a de facto data-licensing decision buried in legal fine print. This sets precedent other platforms may copy, making contract review a board-level issue, not just legal's.
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