Meta Fears an Antitrust Verdict in India May Require Features to be Rolled Back

Nitin Konde, Varun Bhardwaj

Jan 17, 2025 — 3 min read

Meta Faces Antitrust Concerns in India, Rollback of Features Possible

According to a court petition by the U.S. company, Meta may have to "roll back or pause" some functionalities in India because of an antitrust injunction that prohibited its WhatsApp messaging service from sharing user data with Meta for advertising purposes. The Competition Commission of India's (CCI) November ruling, which ruled that the firm exploited its power and "coerced" WhatsApp users into agreeing to a 2021 privacy policy that allegedly increased user data collecting and sharing and gave it an unfair edge over competitors, is being challenged by Meta.

In India, Meta's largest market, where there are over 350 million Facebook users and over 500 million WhatsApp users, the CCI has fined the company $24.5 million and banned it from exchanging data for five years. Although Meta has publicly defended its policy change and stated that it disagrees with the CCI order, the U.S. corporation is clearly uneasy about the CCI's decision, as evidenced by its appeal file, which takes a critical stance on the watchdog's operations.

Company’s Major Concern

The business is worried that the prohibition on WhatsApp-to-Meta user data exchange could limit its capacity to provide consumers with customised advertisements on Facebook and Instagram, according to the company's filing with the Indian appeals panel on January 3.

WhatsApp claims in public that it gives Meta access to a user's phone number, transaction history, business interactions, and mobile device data. For the first time, Meta explained the implications of the order in its petition, stating that the data sharing ban may prevent an Indian fashion company from customising Facebook or Instagram advertisements based on their conversation with a WhatsApp user about a particular clothing line.

According to the business, using the solution in its broadest sense will probably necessitate Meta pausing or reversing a number of features and products. It affects WhatsApp's and Meta's capacity to continue operating profitably, albeit it is impossible to pinpoint the precise financial impact on the company. Facebook India Online Services, a registered company that sells advertising inventory in India, claimed $351 million in income in 2023–2024—the most in at least five years.

Meta's Worldwide Concerns

Meta's worldwide problems are made worse by the antitrust issues in India. WhatsApp was charged in 2021 with breaking EU law by neglecting to provide clear and understandable explanations for policy changes. Later on, it consented to inform EU users of the modifications.

The Indian case began in 2021 in response to complaints about modifications to WhatsApp's privacy policies. Meta informed the CCI that the modifications did not increase its capacity for data gathering and exchange, but rather served merely to notify them about the operation of optional business messaging capabilities. According to its November verdict, WhatsApp's policy lacked an opt-out provision and forced users to accept or risk losing access to the service. The watchdog has mandated that WhatsApp give users the option to choose whether or not to share data with Meta.