The European Union has fined online giant Meta nearly 800 million euros for violating antitrust rules by giving Facebook users automatic access to its classified ads platform, Facebook Marketplace.
The European Commission accused the US tech giant of abusing its dominant position by imposing unfair trading conditions on rival online classified services that advertise on Facebook and Instagram.
“This is illegal under EU antitrust rules. Meta must now stop this behaviour,” said Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s competition chief, in a statement.
Meta, however, has vowed to appeal, arguing that the decision overlooks the “thriving European market for online classified services.” The company maintained that Facebook users have the option to engage with Marketplace, emphasizing that many users choose to use the service voluntarily. “People use Facebook Marketplace because they want to, not because they have to,” Meta said in a statement.
This fine is one of the largest antitrust penalties ever imposed by the EU and is part of an ongoing crackdown on Big Tech. The EU has increasingly targeted tech giants with hefty fines in recent years.
The European Commission’s investigation found that because Facebook Marketplace is automatically integrated with Facebook, it provided Meta with a “substantial distribution advantage” that competitors could not replicate. “All Facebook users automatically have access and are regularly exposed to Facebook Marketplace, whether they want to or not,” the Commission stated.
Additionally, Meta was accused of imposing unfair conditions on competing classified ad services that used Facebook and Instagram for advertising. The Commission alleged that Meta used data from these advertisers to benefit Facebook Marketplace exclusively.
Meta denied the allegations, asserting that it did not use advertisers’ data in this way and had established systems to prevent such misuse. “It is disappointing that the Commission has chosen to take regulatory action against a free and innovative service built to meet consumer demand,” the company said.
The EU stressed that Meta’s dominant position in the social network market places a special responsibility on the company not to restrict competition. The investigation into Facebook’s anticompetitive practices began in June 2021, and the Commission formally raised concerns with Meta in December 2022, receiving the company’s response in June 2023.
The fine, amounting to 797.72 million euros (approximately $840 million), was based on the “duration and gravity” of the violation, as well as Meta’s financial turnover. Meta’s total revenue last year was around $135 billion.
This is not the first time Meta has faced regulatory challenges in Europe. The EU has ramped up enforcement of antitrust rules and digital regulations in recent years, notably through the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act. These laws carry severe financial penalties for infringements.
In July, the EU also accused Meta of violating new digital rules by introducing a “pay or consent” system, where users had to either pay to avoid data collection or agree to share their data to continue using Facebook and Instagram for free.
In response to EU pressure, Meta recently announced it would offer non-paying users in the EU the option to receive less targeted advertising, along with discounted subscription rates for ad-free services.