The European Commission imposed a fine of 797.72 million euros on Meta Platforms for violating EU antitrust rules. The reason for the fine was Meta's use of its Facebook social network to impose the Facebook Marketplace ad service, which created unfair conditions for competitors in the field of online commerce.
The decision was made after a long investigation, which began back in June 2021. The European Commission found that Meta used its dominant position in social networks to combine Facebook with Marketplace, which could lead to a restriction of competition in the online classifieds market.
Facebook Marketplace was launched in 2016 and has since expanded its presence in Europe. At the same time, the EU notes that Meta abused its position by forcing Facebook users to interact with Marketplace. In turn, Meta denies the accusation, saying that users can choose whether to use this feature and many ignore it.
The company intends to appeal the decision of the EC. Meta also emphasizes that the European Commission has not been able to prove that its actions caused specific harm to competitors in the market.
The 797 million euro fine is part of a wider EU policy to fight monopoly and anti-competitive behavior in the technology industry. For violation of antimonopoly rules, companies in the EU face a fine of up to 10% of their global turnover.
The decision of the European Commission is an important signal for other large technology companies engaged in similar activities in Europe.
