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EU Fines Meta €797 Million for Anti-Competitive Practices
The European Commission fined Meta for abusing its dominant market position by favoring Facebook Marketplace, its online ad service. Meta is challenging the decision.
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European UnionArtificial IntelligenceCybersecurityCompetitionAntitrustFineMarket DominanceDigital Market
MetaEuropean CommissionFacebookFacebook MarketplaceEbay
- How did Meta obtain this market advantage?
- Meta gained a market advantage by tightly integrating Facebook Marketplace with its main social network, Facebook. This provided automatic and constant exposure to Marketplace users, something competitors couldn't match.
- What is Meta's response to the EU Commission's decision?
- Meta argues that the market has changed since the EU's investigation began in 2021, with strong competitors emerging in various European countries, such as eBay, Leboncoin, Marktplaats, Subito and Finn.no.
- What was the main reason for the European Commission's fine against Meta?
- The European Commission fined Meta €797.72 million for abusing its dominant market position by favoring its Facebook Marketplace ad service. The decision is based on its anti-competitive practices.
- What is the timeframe and compliance requirements for Meta following the EU Commission's decision?
- Meta has 60 days to comply with the EU Commission's decision. This includes potentially unlinking Facebook Marketplace from the Facebook platform, and in any case giving users a real choice in how they access it.
- What unfair practices did the EU investigation uncover regarding Meta's dealings with other ad providers?
- The EU investigation revealed that Meta imposed unfair business conditions on other digital ad providers on Facebook and Instagram. This included unlimited use of competitor's data, gathered directly and indirectly via user clicks.