The European Commission announced on Monday (9 February) that it has warned US tech giant Meta to reverse a WhatsApp policy that blocks alternative AI services from operating on the messaging service – which the executive’s preliminary view sees as violating the bloc’s antitrust laws.
The apparent violation stems from a WhatsApp Business Solutions policy change, implemented in October, that blocks businesses from communicating with customers when AI is the offered service.
That move could make Meta AI, the company’s own chatbot, the sole AI assistance on the service.
Prior to the change, users could communicate with alternative chatbots on the messaging service.
In January, Meta AI competitor ChatGPT stopped operating on WhatsApp due to the policy change.
Based on their initial findings, the commission sees WhatsApp as an important gateway for users to connect with general-purpose AI assistance but views Meta as likely abusing its dominant position by restricting third-party AI services.
The commission therefore announced it intends to impose interim measures to prevent the policy from “causing serious and irreparable harm to the market.”
Explaining the move, Teresa Ribera, commission vice-president for competition, wrote in the press release: “AI markets are developing at a rapid pace, so we also need to be swift in our actions.”
“That is why we are considering quickly imposing interim measures on Meta, to preserve access for competitors to WhatsApp while the investigation is ongoing,” she added.
The commission began investigating the policy for potential antitrust violations in December of last year.
Their preliminary findings align with similar conclusions already made by the Italian Competition and Market Authority.
A similar antitrust case against the policy change by Brazilian authorities was suspended in January.
Meta responds
Reacting to the findings, a Meta spokesperson told EUobserver: “The facts are that there is no reason for the EU to intervene in the WhatsApp Business API.”
“There are many AI options and people can use them from app stores, operating systems, devices, websites, and industry partnerships. The commission’s logic incorrectly assumes the WhatsApp Business API is a key distribution channel for these chatbots,” the spokesperson added.
According to Reuters, the messaging service now has 46 million monthly users in the EU.
Due to the size of that user base, the platform finds itself under even more European regulatory scrutiny.
In January, WhatsApp was designated a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) by the commission, a legal designation that entails even stricter operating requirements under the Digital Services Act.
The interim measures also come at a time when tension between the US and EU over tech relations is extremely high, with Washington seeing Europe’s rules as censoring US companies.
Meta now has a chance to defend itself before the final conclusions are presented.