Last month, the European Commission announced proposed changes to the ePrivacy Directive, a set of rules that regulate how companies collect data online about residents of EU member states. The new proposals will bring messaging, email and voice services under this banner, forcing such platforms to seek the explicit consent of users before being able to use their data for advertising purposes.

At the moment, messaging platforms are largely ad-free—Facebook Messenger allows sponsored messaging, but only if a brand is already part of an open conversation with a consumer. Given the scale and reach of these platforms, there’s clear opportunity to do more. But regulatory changes may curtail any grand plans these platform providers might have to expand marketers’ options.