EU again accuses Meta of distorting competition
The European Commission again accuses Facebook parent company Meta of distorting competition. The online classifieds service Facebook Marketplace violates European antitrust law. The EU Commission complains that Meta imposes unfair trading conditions on competing services.
According to preliminary view of the European Commission, the online classifieds service Facebook Marketplace violates European antitrust law. Accordingly, Facebook parent company Meta would impose unfair trading conditions on competing services that advertise on Facebook and Instagram.
Facebook Marketplace: Does Meta With Its Classified Ads Distort Competition?
The EU Commission also complains that the US company has linked the Facebook Marketplace to its personal social network. Facebook users would have automatic access to the classifieds portal, “whether they want it or not”.
The competition authorities fear that competing services could be excluded from the competition. According to the EU Commission, by being linked to Facebook, Meta with its in-house marketplace has a significant sales advantage that competitors cannot compensate for.
Meta faces a horrendous fine
Meta now has the opportunity to exercise its right of defense. If the EU Commission then comes to the conclusion that the allegations are based on sufficient evidence, it can impose a fine of up to 10 percent on the US company’s global annual turnover.
Margrethe Vestager, Vice-President of the European Commission, said: “We are concerned that Meta has imposed unfair trading conditions that allow it to use data from competing online classifieds services. If confirmed, Meta’s practices would be illegal under our competition rules.”
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