Chile: National Economic Prosecutor’s Office closed investigation into Meta Platforms and WhatsApp over potential anticompetitive conduct linked to privacy update

On 15 September 2025, the National Economic Prosecutor’s Office (FNE) in Santiago, Chile, issued Resolution No. 249, ordering the closure of Investigation Roll No. 2660-21 concerning Facebook, Inc., now Meta Platforms, Inc., and WhatsApp LLC, following a complaint lodged on 4 May 2021 regarding potential anticompetitive conduct linked to the May 2021 update of WhatsApp’s Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy. The investigation examined whether the update, which introduced new optional business functionalities and integration with Meta services, constituted an abuse of dominant position in the national markets for over-the-top instant messaging services between individuals and for business-to-person communications. Evidence showed WhatsApp held a dominant position in the individual messaging market, with 86 per cent penetration among users aged 18 to 65, but the update did not increase data extraction due to the Signal encryption protocol. In the business-to-person segment, WhatsApp’s products had low penetration and faced significant substitutes, limiting potential dominance. The FNE concluded that the update lacked the objective capacity to generate risks or effects contrary to free competition in the analysed markets, while reserving the authority to reopen proceedings if new circumstances arise.