The European Commission has cleared Facebook’s proposed USD 19 billion takeover of mobile messaging provider WhatsApp, confirming the deal would not hurt competition.
“We have carefully reviewed this proposed acquisition and come to the conclusion that it would not hamper competition in this dynamic and growing market,” said outgoing EC competition commissioner Joaquin Almunia.
The EC’s statement explained that Facebook users must set up a profile and typically use the whole social networking site, whereas WhatsApp users only use the app on a mobile.
In addition, consumers will continue to have a wide choice of consumer communications apps, said the EC, going to on to list alternatives such as Line, Viber, iMessage, Telegram, WeChat and Google Hangouts.
US regulators gave the green light for the deal in April, telling WhatsApp to stick to its current privacy practices after the merger, including a commitment not to use personal data for targeted ads.
First announced in February, the deal is the largest in Facebook’s 10-year history, with the company paying USD 4 billion in cash, USD 12 billion in Facebook shares, and an additional USD 3 billion in RSUs for employee retention.
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Source: Telecompaper