"The European Commission decided to take a closer look as it sensed potential issues. The investigation is still ongoing, but the Commission feels that it can't wait for the full investigation to conclude because the delay can cause irreparable harm to competition in the market. "AI markets are developing at rapid pace, so we also need to be swift in our action," said Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice-President for Clean, Just and Competitive Transition."
"So, the Commission has come out with a preliminary conclusion based on two key points: 1) Meta's WhatsApp is likely to be the dominant player in communications apps and 2) banning third-party AI assistants would constitute abuse of that dominant position. Meta will have a chance to defend itself, but the Commission can still apply interim measures. Note that if that happens, it won't "prejudge" the case - Meta may still end up coming out on top once the full investigation completes."
Last year, Meta changed the WhatsApp Business Solution Terms to severely limit what third-party AI chatbots can do, effectively relegating them to customer support. The European Commission opened an investigation after sensing potential competition issues. The Commission says the investigation cannot wait because delays could cause irreparable harm in rapidly developing AI markets. The Commission's preliminary view is that WhatsApp is likely the dominant communications app and that banning third-party AI assistants would amount to abuse of dominance. Meta may present a defense, but interim measures could be applied without prejudging the final outcome. Meta contends the WhatsApp Business API is not a key distribution channel for chatbots. ChatGPT and Copilot have been unavailable on WhatsApp since January 15.
Read at GSMArena.com
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