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The European Union has escalated its antitrust scrutiny of Meta Platforms, warning that it may impose interim measures over the company’s decision to block rival artificial intelligence (AI) services from operating on WhatsApp.
The move marked one of the strongest regulatory signals that Brussels is prepared to act swiftly to curb practices it believes could distort competition in fast-growing digital markets.
In a statement released on Monday, the European Commission said it had formally charged Meta with breaching EU competition rules by restricting access to WhatsApp’s ecosystem.
The EU claimed that Meta’s policy change, implemented on January 15, allows only its in-house AI assistant, Meta AI, to function on WhatsApp, effectively shutting out competing AI developers.
Read Also: $220m Fine: Meta To Shut Down Whatsapp, Facebook In Nigeria
The Commission, which serves as the EU’s antitrust watchdog, said it had issued a “statement of objections” to Meta, outlining its preliminary view that the company’s conduct violates competition law. This document forms the basis of the case against the U.S. tech giant and gives Meta the opportunity to respond before a final decision is reached.
“The Commission therefore intends to impose interim measures to prevent this policy change from causing serious and irreparable harm on the market, subject to Meta’s reply and rights of defence,” the EU executive said.
This suggests regulators are concerned that waiting for a full investigation, often a process that can take years, could allow Meta to cement an unfair advantage in AI-driven services.
At the heart of the dispute is the Commission’s concern that Meta’s policy could cause immediate and lasting damage to competition.
By leveraging WhatsApp’s massive user base, running into the hundreds of millions across Europe, regulators argue that Meta may be unfairly favouring its own AI services while denying rivals a critical route to market.
Read Also: Meta Dismisses 20 Staff For ‘Leaking Confidential Information’
Recall that Meta’s latest clash with EU regulators comes against the backdrop of intensifying scrutiny of its data and advertising practices across Europe.
In April 2025, the European Commission found Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, in breach of the Digital Markets Act (DMA), a landmark regulation designed to rein in the market power of dominant digital platforms, known as “gatekeepers.”
Following the ruling, Meta announced plans to give EU users greater control over how their personal data is shared for advertising across Facebook and Instagram. The company said EU users would be offered options to limit cross-platform data use, a move disclosed after months of engagement with the Commission.
For Meta, the stakes are high. If the Commission proceeds with interim measures, the company could be forced to open WhatsApp to rival AI services while the investigation continues. A final ruling against Meta could also result in significant fines and stricter behavioural remedies.
As the AI race accelerates, the outcome of this case is likely to have broader implications beyond Meta, setting an important precedent for how far dominant digital platforms can go in integrating proprietary AI tools into their core services without breaching competition rules.
Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has warned it may be forced to shut down Facebook and Instagram operations in Nigeria due to mounting regulatory pressure and what it described as “unrealistic” government demands.
The warning came through a court filing obtained by the BBC, as Meta continues to grapple with a $220 million fine imposed by Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) for alleged data privacy violations.
The fine follows a 38-month joint investigation conducted by the FCCPC and the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) into the data practices of Meta and its messaging platform, WhatsApp.
Despite the April 25 ruling by the competition and consumer protection tribunal upholding the fine, Meta has vowed to appeal. The court has given the company until the end of June to comply.
In the filing, Meta indicated that to “mitigate the risk of enforcement measures,” it may have to “effectively shut down the Facebook and Instagram services in Nigeria.” Notably, the company made no mention of WhatsApp in the court document.
The BBC reports that Meta’s primary concerns lie with the NDPC, which the company accuses of misinterpreting the country’s data protection laws.
In addition to the FCCPC fine, the NDPC has fined Meta $32.8 million for alleged privacy breaches, while the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) issued a separate $37.5 million penalty for what it called unapproved advertising content.
Among the regulatory demands is a requirement that Meta obtain prior approval before transferring Nigerian users’ data abroad—a condition the company deems “unrealistic.”
The NDPC has also ordered Meta to create and display educational content on data privacy risks via a dedicated icon on its platforms. These videos are to be co-produced with approved institutions and non-profits, and must address manipulative and unfair data processing practices.
Meta has pushed back against these directives, describing them as “unworkable” and asserting that the Nigerian authorities have failed to properly interpret their own data laws.
The FCCPC maintains that the fines are the result of thorough investigations conducted between May 2021 and December 2023 in partnership with the NDPC.
