Meta Platforms said on Tuesday it disagreed with an order by India's competition watchdog that placed data-sharing restrictions between WhatsApp and its other applications and said it would legally challenge the order.

India’s competition watchdog has ordered WhatsApp to stop sharing user data with other Meta units for advertising purposes for five years and also levied a fine of $25.4 million for antitrust violations related to WhatsApp’s controversial 2021 privacy policy.

Meta today said it “disagrees” with the Competition Commission of India’s decision to impose a fine of Rs 213.14 crore on the social media company.

India's competition watchdog directed WhatsApp to refrain from sharing user data for advertising purposes with other applications owned by Meta for a period of five years and fined the U.S. tech giant $25.

The Competition Commission of India slapped Meta with a INR2.1 billion penalty for abusing its dominant position in messaging and advertising.

Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, has expressed its disagreement with the recent ruling by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) and announced plans to appeal. The decision, which penalised Meta Rs 213.14 crore, revolves around WhatsApp’s controversial 2021 privacy policy update.

Tech giants, including Apple and Meta, face new regulatory challenges with India’s proposed EU-like antitrust law. Read more at straitstimes.com.

We disagree: Meta plans to appeal India's Rs 213-crore penalty decision over WhatsApp policy

According to the CCI order, “The 2021 policy update by WhatsApp on a ‘take it-or-leave-it’ basis constitutes an imposition of unfair conditions under the Act, as it compels all users to accept expanded data collection terms and sharing of data within Meta Group without any opt-out.”

Meta faces a ₹213-crore penalty from India’s Competition Commission over WhatsApp’s 2021 privacy policy update. The tech giant plans to appeal, claiming the policy was fair and preserved user choice.

Meta Platforms said on Tuesday it plans to appeal an order by India's competition watchdog that restricts the U.S. tech firm from sharing data for advertising between WhatsApp and its other applications and also imposed a $25.