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Technology giants Meta and TikTok are contesting the scope of a European law which will set new rules on competition in the digital market from March.
Technology giants Meta and TikTok are contesting the scope of a European law which will set new rules on competition in the digital market from March.
The European Commission has designated 22 large online companies as “core platform services” to be subject to additional monitoring and obligations under the Digital Markets Act (DMA) aimed at cracking down on anti-competitive practices.
The list includes familiar brands ranging from social networks Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, to so-called “intermediation” applications like Google Maps, Amazon Marketplace and the Apple AppStore, including the operating systems iOS, Android and Windows and Google Search.
Six tech titans behind the platforms – the American groups Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta and Microsoft, and the Chinese group ByteDance – have been described as “gatekeepers”.
The DMA follows other European laws aimed at imposing order and rules in the digital world.
Like the Digital Services Act, which came into force in August, and the 2016 General Data Protection Regulation, the DMA has sharp teeth.
Companies that violate the DMA face fines of up to 20% of their overall turnover, or even dismantling orders in serious cases.
But the legislation has already been challenged in what could be a preview of future litigation and divergent interpretations of what it entails.
Meta, owner of Facebook and Instagram, announced on Wednesday that it would file suit in European courts for the designation of its instant messaging service Messenger as a “core platform service”, and for its Facebook marketplace to also be subject within the scope of the DMA.
“This appeal seeks to clarify specific points of law regarding the Messenger and Marketplace designations under the DMA,” a Meta spokesperson said.
“This does not modify or take away from our strong commitment to respect the DMA” alongside the trial, the spokesperson added.
Edgy TikTok
The group also does not call into question its other services – Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp and its Metaads service – falling under European law.
TikTok announced Thursday that it would challenge its own listing, arguing that it sees itself as an emerging player in a field dominated by U.S. giants.
“Our designation risks undermining the DMA’s stated purpose of protecting the true gatekeepers from new competitors like TikTok,” the company wrote on its website.
“The designation decision is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of our business and threatens our ability to grow and compete with true gatekeepers.”
The companies concerned have until Thursday to file a complaint.
Questioned by AFP, the European Commission refused to comment.
An EU official, however, said the EU executive was confident that all companies named were working to comply with the DMA before March 6, 2024.
“Companies are rising legal challengesbut at the same time, they are doing what it takes to follow the law,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
DMA requires interoperability between competing services and ensures easy removal of pre-installed applications.
This requires Apple to allow iPhone and iPad users to turn to app sites other than its AppStore to get software for their devices.
It also prohibits all preferential search engine results, which is consistent with a criticism often made of Google: its site favors its own Google Shopping platform to the detriment of its competitors.
“These calls are understandable, they are even healthy. This shows that we have a rule of law,” declared Alexandre de Streel, co-director of the Center on Regulation in Europe (CERRE) think tank.
“At the start of a new law, there are uncertainties that need to be clarified,” he said.
“I’m not surprised that there are now two or three challenges, but I think there will be more to come when it comes to interpreting this or that obligation (of the DMA) or a other.”
