The European Union told Meta that it is violating anti-trust rules by blocking other companies’ AI chatbots on WhatsApp.
one in strongly worded statement On February 9, the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, said Meta’s decision to deny rivals’ bots access to the messaging app risked “causing serious and irreparable harm to the market.”
The Commission confirmed it is considering imposing “interim measures” to address the situation.
At the heart of the issue is Meta’s decision to update the WhatsApp Business terms of use last October. According to the Commission, this effectively banned third-party AI assistants whatsapp platform. Indeed, since January, Meta’s own AI tool has been the only one available, with others effectively excluded.
After investigating Meta’s actions, the Commission has initially decided that the policy change violates EU competition rules and has now sent a “statement of objections” to the social media giant.
Because the Commission said it considers WhatsApp an “important entry point” for AI assistants to reach consumers, it considers Meta to be “abusing its dominant position” by denying access, and, as such, “protective measures are urgently needed”.
European Commission Executive Vice President Teresa Ribera said in a release: “Artificial intelligence is bringing incredible innovations to consumers, and one of these is the emerging market of AI assistants.
“We must protect effective competition in this vibrant sector, which means we cannot allow major tech companies to illegally leverage their dominance to give themselves unfair advantages. AI markets are evolving at a rapid pace, so we also need to accelerate our action.”
Among the open measures for the Commission, which is awaiting Meta’s formal response, is to demand WhatsApp open up again to other AI assistants.
In a statement released to media outlets, a Meta spokesperson said: “The fact is that there is no reason for the EU to intervene in the WhatsApp Business API. There are many AI alternatives, and people can use them across app stores, operating systems, devices, websites, and industry partnerships.
“The Commission’s reasoning wrongly assumes that the WhatsApp Business API is a major distribution channel for these chatbots.”
This is not the first time Meta has violated European regulations. In 2023, it was fined 1.2 billion euros For misuse of data in breach of European General Data Protection Regulation privacy laws. And last year this An additional fine of 200 million euros was imposedFor breaching obligations to provide consumers with services that use less of their data.
