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EU Fines Meta €797M for Antitrust Violations in Facebook Marketplace Case
The European Union has fined Meta €797.72 million for violating antitrust laws by integrating Facebook Marketplace into its social media platform, giving it an unfair advantage over competitors.
The European Commission accused Meta of abusing its dominant position by automatically granting Facebook users access to Marketplace and imposing unfair trading conditions on rival classified ad providers advertising on Facebook.
“This behavior is illegal under EU antitrust rules. Meta must now stop,” said Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s competition commissioner.
Meta announced plans to appeal the decision, arguing it misrepresents competition in Europe.
“Users choose to engage with Marketplace voluntarily,” Meta stated, dismissing allegations of leveraging competitor ad data for Marketplace’s benefit.
The fine, one of the EU’s largest against Big Tech, reflects the “duration and gravity” of the violations. It comes as the EU intensifies its regulatory scrutiny through measures like the Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act.
This decision follows earlier actions against Meta, including accusations of forcing users into data-sharing agreements under a “pay or consent” system.
To address regulatory concerns, Meta recently introduced less targeted ads for free users in the EU and reduced prices for its ad-free subscriptions.
TV anchor Rufai Oseni makes headlines as he speaks on fuel subsidy in Nigeria. He shared that Nigeria can have fuel subsidy without the long queues at filling stations.
“When we were still paying subsidies, there were no long queues. We were subsidising. So you can still have a subsidy regime going on, and there will be no long queues because production was close by. Dangote had it. That’s just it. That argument also falls flat.
“The biggest beneficiaries of subsidy are not Nigerians. They are crony capitalists that have big infrastructure, and they do contracts. They have been the biggest beneficiaries of the subsidy,” he said.
Lagos State Governor, Sanwo-Olu, speaks to those in the electricity sector about the usual blackouts in the state.
He speaks on ways things can change in the state and how electricity can be provided.
“We need to drop corporate egos, abandon long-standing excuses, and confront the harsh realities obstructing progress in the power sector.”
“We, state governments, used to give excuses that everything is centralised, so the Federal Government has unbundled it now. What have we done in a year and a half?” Sanwo-Olu asked.
“We take two steps forward, we go five steps backward,” he said.
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has declared Thursday, August 20, a work-free day for public servants in the state to mark the Isese Festival.
Speaking on the celebration, he said “Ìṣẹ̀ṣe is not a relic. It is a living expression of our traditions and a celebration of Yoruba spirituality as an important part of Nigeria’s cultural and religious landscape,” he said.
He added “When the drums sound in Lagos on Thursday, they answer drums in Havana, in Salvador, in Port of Spain. Fifty-five million people and counting. Lagos is not observing a local holiday. Lagos is standing at the centre of a global heritage,” Aregbe said.
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