Migliaccio & Rathod LLP is investigating reports that Instagram users are being forced to stop scrolling and wait through advertisements before they can continue using the app.
Instagram has historically allowed users to scroll past advertisements in the same way they scroll past other posts. However, Meta has tested a feature called “ad breaks” that temporarily prevents users from continuing through their feed while a countdown runs.
Users have reported that these advertisements cannot immediately be skipped and that normal scrolling resumes only after the ad break ends.
Reported Problems with Instagram Ad Breaks
Instagram users have reported experiencing:
- advertisements that cannot immediately be scrolled past;
- countdown timers requiring users to wait before continuing;
- the feed temporarily becoming locked during an advertisement;
- repeated ad breaks during normal browsing;
- unexpected interruptions after users had already begun scrolling;
- difficulty understanding why the advertisement could not be skipped; and
- concerns that Instagram is using interface design to force additional advertising exposure.
Meta has publicly confirmed that it tested unskippable ad breaks as a new advertising format.
Potential Dark Pattern Concerns
Migliaccio & Rathod LLP is investigating whether Instagram’s ad-break design may unfairly interfere with consumer choice.
Consumers may reasonably expect that they control whether to continue scrolling through their Instagram feed. An ad break changes that experience by temporarily taking away that control and requiring the user to wait before browsing can continue.
Questions may arise regarding whether Instagram:
- adequately disclosed that users could be prevented from scrolling;
- made material changes to the normal browsing experience without clear notice;
- intentionally created friction to increase advertising exposure;
- used ad breaks to influence consumers’ advertising or privacy choices; or
- made certain choices more burdensome because those choices were less valuable to Meta.
Federal regulators have warned that digital interfaces can raise consumer-protection concerns when they are designed to interfere with or manipulate consumers’ ability to make choices.
Advertising and Privacy Choices
Meta has also publicly described a system in Europe where users choosing less-personalized advertising may experience unskippable ad breaks, while users choosing personalized advertising may continue browsing without those interruptions.
That structure raises additional questions about whether ad breaks may be used to make privacy-protective choices more burdensome.
This investigation is also seeking information about whether Instagram users in the United States have experienced similar practices.
We Are Interested in Hearing From Instagram Users Who:
- encountered an advertisement they could not immediately scroll past;
- saw an “ad break” countdown timer;
- were prevented from continuing through their Instagram feed until an advertisement ended;
- repeatedly encountered forced ad breaks;
- did not understand beforehand that Instagram could stop them from scrolling;
- changed advertising or privacy settings because of ad breaks;
- were told that different advertising settings could change whether ad breaks appeared;
- have screenshots or screen recordings of an Instagram ad break; or
- believe Instagram’s advertising interface was confusing, manipulative, or difficult to avoid.
If you encountered forced ad breaks while using Instagram, we would like to hear from you. If you believe you encountered these issues, please complete the contact form on this page, send us an email at [email protected], or give us a call at (202) 470-3520.