New Delhi, January 23:
In a significant relief for Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has temporarily stayed the five-year ban imposed by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) on WhatsApp’s data-sharing practices.
The NCLAT bench, led by Justice Ashok Bhushan, noted that such a ban could severely impact WhatsApp’s business operations in India, where the platform boasts over 500 million active users.
The tribunal also directed Meta to deposit 50% of the Rs 213 crore penalty levied by the CCI within two weeks. Meta has already paid 25% of the fine.
The order came after Meta and WhatsApp filed a plea seeking a stay on the CCI’s penalty, which was imposed for the alleged abuse of dominant market position. The NCLAT is set to deliberate further on the case.
The tribunal highlighted that India’s forthcoming data protection law could address the concerns around data privacy raised in the case.
WhatsApp’s privacy policy, revised in 2021, has been a point of contention as it allows user data to be shared with other Meta companies, including Instagram, without providing users an option to opt out.
The CCI’s initial order in November last year instructed WhatsApp not to share user data with other Meta-owned platforms for advertising purposes for five years, and imposed a fine on Meta for abusing its dominant position in the market.
Meta challenged the CCI’s decision and stressed that the ruling could have far-reaching implications for the broader tech industry. The CCI’s investigation, initiated in March 2021, focused on WhatsApp’s updated privacy policy that required mandatory data sharing with Facebook (now Meta) and its affiliated companies, expanding data collection practices.
About The Author
