Facebook and Instagram parent companies Apple and Meta were fined together on Tuesday for breaking antitrust rules in the European Union’s digital market.
The European Commission violated the Digital Markets Act (DMA) by fines Apple 500 million euros, or about $570 million, and blocking app developers from customers to alternatives other than the iPhone’s App Store.
Meta is facing 200 million euros, or about $228 million. This is because we were unable to provide users with a version of the service that uses personal data. The European Commission said the agreement or payment model has not met the requirements of the DMA.
“Today’s decision sends a strong and clear message,” Teresa Libera, the EU’s top antitrust official, said in a statement. “The Digital Markets Act is an important tool to unlock potential, choice and growth by enabling digital players to operate in a competitive and fair market.”
“Apple and Meta have not reached DMA compliance by implementing measures to enhance the reliance on the platform for business users and consumers,” she added.
Meta has since updated the model to allow for a free experience of displaying ads using less data, but the European Commission said it is still evaluating this option and fines the company during the non-compliance period.
Meta denounced the decision on Thursday, claiming it was effectively a multi-billion dollar tariff on the social media giant.
“The European Commission is trying to handicap successful American companies while ensuring that Chinese and European companies operate under different standards,” Joel Caplan, Meta’s chief global affairs officer, said in a statement.
“This isn’t just fines. The committee that forces them to change their business model effectively imposes multi-billion dollar tariffs on meta, demanding that they provide inferior services,” he continued.
Large tech companies, including META, are increasingly referring to EU fines as a form of tariffs for US companies.
Shortly after taking office, Trump was told that he was fined by the EU at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland “The form of taxation” About American tech companies pointing to billions of dollars fines against Apple and Google.
An EU court held that Apple owed Ireland more than $14 billion in back taxes in September, but fined Google for violating Bloc’s anti-trust rules.
Despite Trump’s criticism of the EU, his administration continues to pursue a positive approach to antitrust, particularly with regard to big technology.
Trump’s Justice Department is now asking for a break-up in Google’s court after it was discovered that the tech giant had an illegal monopoly over online searches last year.
His Federal Trade Commission is taking place simultaneously in a trial against Meta, which accused the purchase of Instagram and WhatsApp of being held for being monopolized over personal social networking.
The incident has moved forward despite Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg reporting efforts to lobby Trump for a settlement.
