EU fines Meta nearly 800 million euros

On November 14, the European Union (EU) fined Meta Company (headquartered in the US) nearly 800 million euros for allegedly violating antitrust laws.

According to Reuters, the amount of the fine imposed by the EU is 797 million euros (about 840 million USD) for the act of linking personal accounts of the social network Facebook (a subsidiary of Meta) with the online classified advertising channel Facebook Marketplace.

The EU said this violated the bloc's antitrust laws. The European Commission also accused Meta of abusing its dominant position and imposing unfair trading conditions on other online advertisers.

The EU has just fined Meta nearly 800 million euros.

In a statement, Meta said it would appeal, stressing that the EU had provided no evidence of harm to competitors or consumers. However, the US tech company added that it would comply with the rules and provide constructive solutions to the issues raised.

In 2022, the European Commission accused Meta of unfair competition, by merging Facebook Marketplace and Facebook personal pages into one application, which experts said would help Marketplace take advantage of Facebook user data, thereby suggesting appropriate advertisements.

The EU ruling on November 14 found that Meta’s placement of Marketplace on its Facebook app for individual users was an “illegal link.” Meta argued that Facebook users could opt in to Marketplace. The company also raised the issue that the European Commission had found Marketplace to be a risk to the development of existing large online marketplaces in the EU, but had not provided any evidence of harm to competitors.

Facebook launched its Marketplace classifieds channel in 2016 and went live in the EU a year later. According to Reuters, the fine comes from the fact that companies that violate EU antitrust laws can be fined up to 10% of a company's global turnover.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/eu-ra-an-phat-gan-800-trieu-euro-voi-meta-185241114211352668.htm