Meta is shutting down Threads in Turkey following injunction against data-sharing with Instagram

Joystiq

Joystiq News
Meta is
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
on April 29 after an interim injunction from the Turkish Competition Authority (TCA)
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
. The TCA ruled that linking Threads and Instagram without user opt-in “will lead to irreparable harms” and that Meta “abused its dominant position” in the industry with the practice. The TCA also suggested that the linking exists primarily to increase the company’s “market power.”

Rather than make any changes to how Instagram and Threads integrate in the region, Meta’s pulling the nascent social media app. The company says this is merely a temporary measure as it works to appeal the injunction, but there’s no timetable for that. In the meantime, Meta suggests that users in Turkey either deactivate their accounts or delete them entirely. Those who deactivate will have their posts and interactions restored “if Threads returns” to the country.


Turkish regulators aren’t the only people who think the automatic linking between Threads and Instagram is, at best, a bit creepy. It’s been a point of contention since the platform launched last year. The apps were so tied together that users couldn’t even delete a Threads account
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
, though Meta patched this several months back.

Meta also began promoting Threads posts on Facebook and Instagram
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
, eventually allowing
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
of the, uh, “feature.” This is the type of automatic data-sharing that bristled the TCA, leading to the recent injunction.

Also, this isn’t the first regulatory battle between Meta and Turkey. The country fined Meta $18.6 million back in 2022 for data-sharing across its apps,
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
. This is an alleged violation of the country’s competition laws. The country asked Meta to submit documents detailing its efforts to stop violation of these laws, but Turkish regulators said the explanations were lacking. As such, the country slapped Meta with additional fines,
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!


Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!


Console Bang News!
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Top