The European Union has imposed a €798 million ($840 million) fine on Meta Platforms, accusing the company of unfairly promoting its Facebook Marketplace by tying it to the popular social network Facebook and setting restrictive terms for other online classified ad services.
“The European Commission has fined Meta for violating EU antitrust rules by linking its Facebook Marketplace with its social networking platform and imposing unfair conditions on competitors in the online classified ads market,” said the EU’s executive branch in a statement.
Meta has announced plans to appeal the decision but says it will comply with EU regulations in the meantime. The company is preparing a solution to address the EU’s concerns.
The case follows a two-year investigation by the European Commission, which began probing Facebook’s conduct in June 2021. By December 2022, the EU raised concerns about Meta’s bundling of Facebook Marketplace with its main social network. According to the EU, this practice constitutes an illegal “tie” that forces Marketplace onto Facebook users.
Launched in 2016, Facebook Marketplace expanded into several European countries the following year. Meta argues that users have the freedom to engage with Marketplace or ignore it entirely, and that the EU’s findings overlook this choice. Additionally, Meta contends that the EU could not demonstrate harm to other online marketplaces.
Under EU antitrust laws, companies can face fines of up to 10% of their global revenue for such violations.
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