NCLAT stays CCI ban on WhatsApp

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) today stayed the order of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) that mandated WhatsApp not to share data collected on its platforms with Meta or its products for a period of five years.

Chairperson Justice Ashok Bhushan and Technical Member Arun Baroka said, “Ban of 5 years may lead to the collapse of business model of WhatsApp LLC since the platform is free. We are of the view that ban of 5 years need to be stayed.”

The governing body also stayed a penalty of ₹213.14 crore subject to WhatsApp/Meta depositing 50 percent of the amount.

Previously, CCI imposed a penalty of ₹213.14 crore penalty on Meta for taking undue advantage of its dominant position via WhatsApp's 2021 privacy policy. The policy effective from February 8, 2021 mandated users to accept data sharing with Meta as a condition.