The European Commission has ordered Meta's popular messaging service, WhatsApp, to grant free access to rival artificial intelligence (AI) developers until the end of an ongoing antitrust investigation.
"In rapidly evolving markets, competition can be lost long before a final decision is adopted," said EU competition czar Teresa Ribera on Tuesday.
The measure will "will safeguard competition in the growing market for AI assistants, by preserving a key entry point to reach consumers in Europe – WhatsApp – and allowing AI companies to innovate, scale up and reach their full potential," the European Commission vice president said.
Parent company Meta, which also owns Facebook and Instagram, has to comply with the order within five working days, the commission said.
The EU's executive arm has been investigating Meta for alleged breaches of EU competition law after the US tech giant announced last year it would restrict access to the WhatsApp messaging service for rival AI providers.
In April, the commission threatened to impose interim measures on WhatsApp after Meta said that it is to reinstate access subject to the payment of a fee. The introduction of a fee "is in practice equivalent to the previous access ban," the commission said.
"There is an urgent need to prevent a risk of serious damage to the competitive structure in the growing market for general-purpose AI assistants," a press release said.
"Meta's policy change risks harming competition at a key time for the development of that market, where smaller players and new entrants can challenge large incumbents," the statement said.
If the investigation eventually confirms that Meta has breached EU competition law, the commission can impose penalties on the US company.
There is no deadline or legal time limit for antitrust investigations in the European Union.
EU proceedings are also under way against Meta for suspected breaches of the bloc's digital laws.
In October, the commission announced that Meta could face heavy fines for a lack of data transparency and its handling of illegal content on Facebook and Instagram.
The commission also suspects that the US company may be breaching rules on the protection of minors including insufficiently protecting children and young people from addictive algorithms.
