On 4 November 2021, an antitrust lawsuit was filed against Facebook’s parent, Meta, in the Southern District of New York. Facebook has been accused of having excluded rival photo app, Phhhoto, from access to its platform, and for replicating its product with a ‘Boomerang’ function. Facebook allegedly took interest in Phhhoto shortly after it launched…
On 25 October 2021 the UK Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) announced the opening of a Market Investigation into Motorola’s Airwave Network. This is a mobile radio network used by emergency services across the UK to communicate. The announcement follows a CMA consultation which was published in July 2021. The CMA listed a number of…
The UK Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) has today announced a £50.5 million fine against Facebook. The fine is in relation to breach of an interim enforcement order (“IEO”) imposed on the company at the start of the CMA’s merger investigation into its purchase of Giphy, in June 2020. The IEO required Facebook to give…
On 6 October 2021, Ofcom issued guidance for providers on measures to protect users from harmful material. Ofcom has been given new powers to regulate UK-based video-sharing platforms (VSPs), such as TikTok, Snapchat and Twitch. VSP regulation sets out to protect users from specific types of harmful material in videos, such as material likely to…
On 27 September, the week-long EU General Court hearings began in order to hear Google’s appeal against the European Commission’s 2018 decision which found that Google had abused its dominant position in respect of its Android mobile operating system, and associated fine. Reports from the hearing indicate that lawyers for both the European Commission and…
On 10 September 2021, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers issued an injunction in the Epic v Apple case. Apps cannot be restricted from directing users to other payment options, in addition to the ones offered by Apple. The injunction will take effect on 9 December 2021. The injunction reads as follows: “Apple Inc. and its officers,…
On 2nd September 2021 the Irish Data Protection Commission (”DPC”) imposed its biggest fine to date on WhatsApp, the messaging app owned by Facebook. In its reasoning (available here) the DPC considered both: the information provided by WhatsApp to its users, and perhaps more importantly the lack of information provided to non-users. Namely, it was…
South Korea’s parliament has approved on the 31st of August 2021 a bill that prohibits Apple and Google from forcing app developers to only use their proprietary billing systems. The bill is an amendment to South Korea’s Telecommunications Business Act. This decision will allow app developers to avoid paying 15 to 30% commission on every…
In a settlement in the US with a number of independent app developers, Apple has committed to allowing independent app developers using the Apple App Store to reach out to users outside of the apps, such as via email, to inform them of alternative ways to make payments. Currently, payments through the App Store and…
In December 2020, the US Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) filed a lawsuit against Facebook for a “buy or bury” strategy to new entrants. The claim argued that Facebook was illegally maintaining its social networking monopoly through an anti-competitive campaign to either acquire or kill potential competitors. The claim was dismissed by US District Judge James…
