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Facebook\u2019s 2014<\/a> acquisition of messaging app WhatsApp cost\u00a0$19 billion when it was announced. Now\u00a0the price tag has been bumped up a little more, after European regulators slapped the company with a\u00a0\u20ac110M (~$122M) fine for providing \u201cincorrect or misleading\u201d information at the time of the deal.<\/p>\n The European Commission said today<\/a> that Facebook told it at that time\u00a0that it could not automatically match user accounts on its own platform and WhatsApp \u2014 yet the company subsequently revealed\u00a0it would be doing just that.<\/p>\n The controversial change to WhatsApp\u2019s privacy policy to share user data including phone numbers with Facebook took place in August last year<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 and led to widespread condemnation of the privacy U-turn.<\/p>\n In a statement today, the European Commission said: \u201cThe Commission has found that, contrary to Facebook\u2019s statements in the 2014 merger review process, the technical possibility of automatically matching Facebook and WhatsApp users\u2019 identities already existed in 2014, and that Facebook staff were aware of such a possibility.\u201d<\/p>\n This follows a\u00a0Statement of Objections<\/a> to Facebook detailing the Commission\u2019s\u00a0concerns last December.<\/p>\n Facebook responded to the fine with its own\u00a0statement \u2014 claiming it had made \u201cerrors\u201d in 2014 when it made the\u00a0filing to regulators.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve acted in good faith since our very first interactions with the Commission and we\u2019ve sought to provide accurate information at every turn. The errors we made in our 2014 filings were not intentional and the Commission has confirmed that they did not impact the outcome of the merger review. Today\u2019s announcement brings this matter to a close,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n The EC is not reversing its decision to clear the WhatsApp acquisition. However it\u2019s clear the region\u2019s\u00a0regulators are waking\u00a0up to the cumulative power of big data holdings. And European data protection agencies\u2019 fast-flowing objections to\u00a0the WhatsApp-Facebook data-sharing quickly\u00a0led to\u00a0Facebook suspending these data flows in the region<\/a>.<\/p>\n In a statement on today\u2019s fine, EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said: \u201cToday\u2019s decision sends a clear signal to companies that they must comply with all aspects of EU merger rules, including the obligation to provide correct information. And it imposes a proportionate and deterrent fine on Facebook,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n The EC further notes that\u00a0today\u2019s decision is \u201cunrelated to either ongoing national antitrust procedures or privacy, data protection or consumer protection issues, which may arise following the August 2016 update of WhatsApp terms of service and privacy policy\u201d.<\/p>\n So while Facebook is claiming the specific matter is closed, it remains to be seen whether the company will face further regulatory problems related to its ownership and operation of\u00a0WhatsApp.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"![\"\"](\"https:\/\/tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com\/2014\/02\/fb-whatsapp1.png?w=680\")
Facebook’s 2014 acquisition of messaging app WhatsApp cost $19 billion when it was announced. Now the price tag has been bumped up a little more, after European regulators slapped the company with a \u20ac110M (~$122M) fine for providing “incorrect or misleading” information at the time of the deal. Read More<\/a><\/p>\n\n<\/img><\/a>
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