New Delhi: The standoff between Meta and India’s competition watchdog has intensified, with the tech major telling the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Monday that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has failed to establish any evidence of abuse of dominance or restriction of market access for rivals.
According to a PTI report, Meta’s counsel Amit Sibal argued that the CCI’s case was based on assumptions about potential future conduct rather than proven violations. He said the regulator had not demonstrated how limited data sharing from optional business features—such as Click-to-WhatsApp Ads—with Meta entities had adversely impacted competition in the online display advertising market.
Sibal further contended that the CCI neither sought advertiser feedback on the substitutability of advertising services nor considered broader categories like online search advertising. As a result, he said, the regulator had defined an “artificially narrow” relevant market restricted only to online display advertising.
The CCI has sought more time to respond to Meta’s submissions. Hearings will now continue on September 19 and 22.
At the heart of the dispute is the INR 213.14 crore penalty imposed by the CCI on Meta in November 2024 for alleged unfair practices linked to WhatsApp’s 2021 privacy policy update. The regulator had concluded that WhatsApp’s “take-it-or-leave-it” approach to data sharing exploited its dominance in messaging and risked strengthening Meta’s position in digital advertising through cross-platform integration. Along with the penalty, the CCI barred WhatsApp from sharing user data with Meta or affiliates for advertising purposes for five years.
Meta and WhatsApp challenged the order before the NCLAT in January 2025. While granting interim relief, the tribunal stayed the five-year ban on data sharing. Meta has maintained that such restrictions would impair its ability to deliver personalised ads on Facebook and Instagram, ultimately impacting Indian businesses.
The case marks one of the most significant antitrust battles between a Big Tech company and India’s competition regulator, with implications for digital advertising, user privacy, and platform dominance.
