Germany: Issued decision on Meta's status as company of paramount significance across markets

On 4 May 2022, the German competition authority (Bundeskartellamt) determined that Meta is a company of paramount significance across markets, a new regulatory categorisation for large digital companies. Under section 19a of the German Competition Act (GWB), the Bundeskartellamt can open investigations against companies "of paramount significance for competition across markets" quickly and restrain such companies from implementing anti-competitive behaviour. In its decision, the Bundeskartellamt noted that Meta has more than 3.5 billion users and is the leading provider of social media advertising. This determination will affect Bundeskartellamt investigations into Meta, including an appealed investigation regarding the combination of user data from different sources and an ongoing investigation regarding abuse of market power with relation to its Oculus virtual reality products since the use of the virtual reality products requires a Facebook account. The Bundeskartellamt noted that Meta appealed the determination, which will be valid for five years after becoming final.