Markets

EU hits Facebook with $122 million fine

/ AP

Female engineers claim gender bias at Facebook

BRUSSELS - The European Union's competition watchdog has fined Facebook (FB) 110 million euros ($122 million) for providing misleading information over its buyout of mobile messaging service WhatsApp.

The European Commission said Thursday that when Facebook informed the Commission of the 2014 buyout it said it would be unable to "establish reliable automated matching" between Facebook and WhatsApp user accounts.

But the Commission said in 2016 WhatsApp offered updates including the possibility of linking user phone numbers with Facebook user IDs.

Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said the fine is proportionate and serves as a deterrent.

She said "the Commission must be able to take decisions about mergers' effects on competition in full knowledge of accurate facts."

First published on May 18, 2017 / 8:15 AM EDT

© 2017 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

f

We and our partners use cookies to understand how you use our site, improve your experience and serve you personalized content and advertising. Read about how we use cookies in our cookie policy and how you can control them by clicking Manage Settings. By continuing to use this site, you accept these cookies.