EU threatens interim ban on Meta over WhatsApp AI policies blocking rival AI chatbots

Meta Threatened With EU Restrictions Over WhatsApp AI Concerns

Meta Platforms Inc. has been threatened with an interim European Union ban on policies that allegedly block rival AI firms from operating on WhatsApp, unless the tech giant offers fixes that appease the bloc's concerns. In a so-called supplementary statement of objections, the European Commission said on Wednesday it intends to "impose interim measures to prevent these policy changes from causing serious and irreparable harm on the market, subject to Meta's reply and rights of defence." The move comes after policies were earlier introduced by Meta that complainants say may unfairly prevent rival AI providers from offering their business services through WhatsApp. Get the Tech Newsletter bundle. Get the Tech Newsletter bundle. Get the Tech Newsletter bundle. Bloomberg's subscriber-only tech newsletters, and full access to all the articles they feature. Bloomberg's subscriber-only tech newsletters, and full access to all the articles they feature. Bloomberg's subscriber-only tech newsletters, and full access to all the articles they feature. Plus Signed UpPlus Sign UpPlus Sign Up By continuing, I agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. "The European Commission is proposing to use its regulatory powers to enable some of the largest companies in the world to use the paid-for WhatsApp Business product for free," a Meta spokesperson said in an emailed statement. "This means that a small bakery in France paying to use the service to take croissant orders will be picking up the tab for OpenAI. Small European businesses shouldn't foot OpenAI's bill." Under EU rules, competition regulators can order companies to temporarily stop suspect business practices, but these demands can be challenged in the bloc's courts in Luxembourg. Eventual fines for breaching the EU antitrust rulebook can be as high as 10% of global annual revenue, although they rarely reach that level, especially if alleged wrongdoing is short-lived. Italian regulators were the first to examine alleged competitive distortions arising from the AI policies of WhatsApp over its alleged abuse of a dominant market position in its chatbot services. The Italian antitrust agency earlier said it was working with its EU counterparts on the issue. The Brussels-based commission said Wednesday it had expanded its probe to cover Italy too, which had earlier been carved out of the investigation while the Rome regulator had been examining the issue.

EU warns Meta WhatsApp AI fee breaches antitrust rules, orders rollback

BRUSSELS, April 15 (Reuters) - The European Commission said on Wednesday it intended to order Meta Platforms (META.O), opens new tab to reinstate rival artificial intelligence assistants on its WhatsApp messaging service after the U.S. tech giant imposed an access fee. "The Commission notified Meta that the revised policy seems to have the same effect of excluding third-party ⁠AI assistants from WhatsApp and thus appears at first sight to be in breach of EU competition rules," the EU's executive arm said. Interim measures, which the Commission imposes when it has concerns of damage to competition, would remain in place until the end of the investigation, it said. "To prevent serious and irreparable harm to competition, the Commission intends to order Meta to reinstate access for third-party AI assistants under the same conditions as before 15 October 2025," it added in ⁠a statement. Meta previously informed the Commission in March that it would allow rival AI assistants on WhatsApp for one year, contingent on a fee, after initially planning to ban third-party AI chatbots from WhatsApp Business. "The European Commission is proposing to use its regulatory powers to ⁠enable some of the largest companies in the world to use the paid-for WhatsApp Business product for free," a Meta spokesperson said in an emailed statement. "This means that a small ⁠bakery in France paying to use the service to take croissant orders will be picking up the tab for OpenAI. Small European businesses shouldn't foot OpenAI's ⁠bill," the spokesperson added. The Commission also said that its investigation had been expanded to Italy, where the Italian competition watchdog had opened its own probe last year. Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro; Editing by Inti Landauro and Alexander Smith Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab * Suggested Topics: * Artificial Intelligence * Antitrust * Regulatory Oversight Gianluca Lo Nostro Thomson Reuters Gianluca's stories appear regularly on the business and technology section, with a particular focus on France and its efforts to compete with global rivals. He has reported extensively on connectivity and the geopolitics behind it in the war in Ukraine. A background in international studies, Gianluca started his journalism career in Milan and has covered French general and political news with Reuters in Paris.

EU threatens to force Meta to restore WhatsApp full access for rival AI chatbots

LONDON (AP) -- European Union regulators have threatened to force WhatsApp parent Meta Platforms to reverse a move that they say effectively limits the AI chatbots of rival companies from accessing the messaging app. Meta's attempt to resolve the bloc's antitrust investigation of WhatsApp by charging third-party AI companies for access is unsatisfactory, the European Commission said Wednesday. The commission, which is the 27-nation bloc's executive arm and top antitrust enforcer, opened the investigation last year over concerns that WhatsApp was blocking competing artificial intelligence companies from offering their AI assistants on the platform. Officials said Meta's decision in March to start charging third-party AI providers for access was essentially equivalent to the ban it had in place. "Replacing the legal ban with pricing that has a similar effect does not change our preliminary view that Meta's conduct appears to be an abuse of its dominant position, that may seriously harm competition on the market for AI assistants," Teresa Ribera, the commission's executive vice president overseeing competition, said in a statement. When Brussels opened its investigation in December, officials said they were scrutinizing new terms and conditions that blocked providers of AI chatbots from using a tool to communicate with customers. The bloc said it intends to issue its order to reinstate access for third-party chatbots under previous terms until it reaches a final decision on the case. Meta said the commission's decision means that the company will have to provide its service for free and would amount to subsidizing select companies rather than clearing the way for more competition. It could mean, for example, that "a small bakery in France paying to use the service to take croissant orders will be picking up the tab for OpenAI," Meta said of one of its competitors in a statement. "Small European businesses shouldn't foot OpenAI's bill."

EU rejects Meta's pay-for-access remedy in WhatsApp AI chatbots probe

Brussels (Belgium) (AFP) - The EU told Meta Wednesday that charging rival AI chatbots for access to its WhatsApp platform runs against the bloc's antitrust rules, rebuffing the measure taken by the US giant in response to a probe. Meta started charging a fee as redress in March after an EU probe found it had "effectively" barred third-party artificial intelligence assistants from the messaging platform -- in breach of competition rules. But the European Commission, the European Union's competition watchdog, said it was unsatisfied with the remedy. "Replacing the legal ban with pricing that has a similar effect does not change our preliminary view that Meta's conduct appears to be an abuse of its dominant position, that may seriously harm competition," said the bloc's antitrust chief, Teresa Ribera. The commission said it intended to order Meta to reinstate third-party AI assistants' access to WhatsApp under the same conditions as before its October 2025 policy change as part of interim measures pending completion of the probe. Opened in December, the EU investigation is part of attempts by the 27-nation bloc to rein in Big Tech firms, many of which are based in the United States, which has drawn the ire of President Donald Trump. Meta has integrated its own generative assistant, Meta AI, across the company's platforms, which also include Facebook and Instagram, used by billions of people globally. Its restrictions on rivals apply when AI is the core service offered -- as with a chatbot or assistant -- though firms can still use AI for support functions such as customer service via WhatsApp. EU regulators are concerned that locking WhatsApp's more than three billion users into Meta AI could give the company a commercial advantage over rival chatbots, particularly smaller market entrants. The investigation was extended to Italy and now covers the entire European Economic Area (EEA), made up of the bloc's 27 states, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, the commission said Wednesday. Italy had been previously excluded for it had opened its own separate probe into the matter.

EU Threatens to Force Meta to Restore WhatsApp Full Access for Rival AI Chatbots

LONDON (AP) -- European Union regulators have threatened to force WhatsApp parent Meta Platforms to reverse a move that they say effectively limits the AI chatbots of rival companies from accessing the messaging app. Meta's attempt to resolve the bloc's antitrust investigation of WhatsApp by charging third-party AI companies for access is unsatisfactory, the European Commission said Wednesday. The commission, which is the 27-nation bloc's executive arm and top antitrust enforcer, opened the investigation last year over concerns that WhatsApp was blocking competing artificial intelligence companies from offering their AI assistants on the platform. Officials said Meta's decision in March to start charging third-party AI providers for access was essentially equivalent to the ban it had in place. "Replacing the legal ban with pricing that has a similar effect does not change our preliminary view that Meta's conduct appears to be an abuse of its dominant position, that may seriously harm competition on the market for AI assistants," Teresa Ribera, the commission's executive vice president overseeing competition, said in a statement. When Brussels opened its investigation in December, officials said they were scrutinizing new terms and conditions that blocked providers of AI chatbots from using a tool to communicate with customers. The bloc said it intends to issue its order to reinstate access for third-party chatbots under previous terms until it reaches a final decision on the case. Meta said the commission's decision means that the company will have to provide its service for free and would amount to subsidizing select companies rather than clearing the way for more competition. It could mean, for example, that "a small bakery in France paying to use the service to take croissant orders will be picking up the tab for OpenAI," Meta said of one of its competitors in a statement. "Small European businesses shouldn't foot OpenAI's bill."

EU Moves to Force Meta to Restore Rival AI Access on WhatsApp | PYMNTS.com

According to Reuters, the Commission warned that Meta's revised policy could undermine fair competition by limiting access for rival AI services. "The Commission notified Meta that the revised policy seems to have the same effect of excluding third-party AI assistants from WhatsApp and thus appears at first sight to be in breach of EU competition rules," the EU's executive arm said in a statement. Per Reuters, the Commission indicated it is prepared to impose interim measures while its investigation continues, citing concerns about potential harm to competition. These temporary steps would remain in place until the probe concludes. "To prevent serious and irreparable harm to competition, the Commission intends to order Meta to reinstate access for third-party AI assistants under the same conditions as before 15 October 2025," the statement added. The dispute follows earlier efforts by Meta to reshape how AI services operate within WhatsApp. According to Reuters, the company had previously told regulators in March that it would allow rival AI assistants on the platform for one year, but only if they paid a fee. This followed an earlier plan to block third-party AI chatbots from WhatsApp Business entirely. Read more: Court Allows Class Action Against Meta Over Facebook Data Breach Meta has pushed back against the Commission's stance, arguing that the proposed intervention could unfairly benefit large technology firms. "The European Commission is proposing to use its regulatory powers to enable some of the largest companies in the world to use the paid-for WhatsApp Business product for free," a Meta spokesperson said in an emailed statement. The company also warned of unintended consequences for smaller users of its platform. "This means that a small bakery in France paying to use the service to take croissant orders will be picking up the tab for OpenAI. Small European businesses shouldn't foot OpenAI's bill," the spokesperson added. Per Reuters, the Commission has also broadened its investigation to include Italy, where the national competition authority launched its own inquiry into the matter last year. The expanded scope underscores growing scrutiny across Europe over how major technology firms manage access to digital platforms, particularly in emerging areas such as artificial intelligence.

EU targets Meta with possible interim measures over WhatsApp AI rival ban

BRUSSELS, April 15 (Reuters) - The European Commission said on Wednesday it intended to impose interim measures on Meta Platforms after the U.S. tech giant moved to reinstate artificial intelligence assistants from rivals on its WhatsApp messaging service for a fee. "The Commission notified Meta that the revised policy seems to have the same effect of excluding third-party AI assistants from WhatsApp and thus appears at first sight to be in breach of EU competition rules," the EU's executive arm said in a statement. In March, Meta told the Commission it would allow artificial intelligence rivals on WhatsApp for a year subject to the payment of a fee. (Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro; Editing by Inti Landauro)