Europe gave Meta a 789 million euros fine

Recently, the big names of Silicon Valley don't seem to be doing very well. The latest bad news comes for Meta, after the European Union decided to fine Mark Zuckerberg's conglomerate €798 million for violating European antitrust laws. The reason? Facebook Marketplace ads on its social platforms, which, according to the European Commission, unfairly favor the in-house service over rival second-hand platforms. According to EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager, through the direct connection of Marketplace to Facebook's platform, Meta imposed unfair trading conditions. From the findings of the investigation, it seems that the Silicon Valley giant uses data from rival platforms advertising on Facebook to favor Marketplace. Unsurprisingly, Zuck's company has already declared its intention to appeal the Commission's decision. The company has contested not only the penalty but also the interpretation of the facts, claiming that the success of Marketplace in the European market is not the result of unfair practices but of an effective commercial strategy. However, a possible appeal process could take years to reach a final conclusion. In the meantime, the nearly billion-dollar fine serves as a significant warning, although, based on the numbers, the impact on the tech giant's finances will be limited. In the third quarter of 2024, Meta recorded revenue of $40.6 billion, a 19% increase compared to the same period the previous year.

In recent years, the European Union has significantly raised its sights against the big names in tech and retail: higher tariffs for low-cost labor (for example, Shein, Temu, and AliExpress), investigations into Meta, X, and TikTok, and temporary blocks on new artificial intelligence technologies by Google and Apple. Since 2023, two regulations exclusively targeting the digital sphere—previously considered a sort of legal Wild West—have come into force: the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act. These regulations aim to ensure greater consumer protection and prevent major platforms from abusing their market dominance. According to Bloomberg, the next company to come under scrutiny could be Apple, accused of not yet complying with the Digital Markets Act directives, particularly regarding the management of its app stores and restrictions on alternative payment systems. Although these measures seem to indicate Brussels' strong intent to regulate the sector, the future of investigations could be influenced by political changes within the Union. The European Commission's mandate expires in 2024, which could slow the pace of antitrust initiatives. In the meantime, however, Meta has to pay the price.