Meta won a court challenge Wednesday forcing the EU to lift tough rules on its Facebook Marketplace platform but lost a similar bid regarding Messenger, in a legal test of the bloc's powers to regulate technology giants.
The appeal before the EU's General Court in Luxembourg regarded the platforms' designation under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), one of several EU digital laws facing fierce criticism from US President Donald Trump's administration.
Meta faces strict rules and obligations after being designated a so-called "gatekeeper" under the DMA, and its Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp producdts are subject to extra scrutiny as "core platform services" under the law.
But the US giant filed a legal challenge in November 2023 arguing that both the Messenger and Marketplace apps were an extension of Facebook, and should not face stringent obligations of their own.
"By its judgment today, the General Court of the European Union annuls the decision designating Meta as a gatekeeper as regards Marketplace, while maintaining Meta's designation for its interpersonal communications service Messenger," the court said in a statement.
The DMA comes with a list of do's and don'ts for the world's biggest digital platforms in an attempt to keep them in check and create an open online space.
Concerning the classification of Marketplace as a "core platform service" subject to tougher rules, the court found the European Commission had "erred in law" on several counts.
It faulted the EU executive for failing to take into account changes made to the platform in mid-2023, and more broadly said its case "lacks sufficient reasoning".
Regarding Messenger, however, the court agreed with the commission that it was "distinct from the Facebook social network", noting that it was "offered by means of standalone applications" and that "Meta promotes tools that are specific to that service".
The EU court in 2024 ruled against a similar bid by TikTok to challenge its DMA designation, a decision the Chinese-owned company has appealed.
Alongside Meta and TikTok's owner ByteDance, the other "gatekeepers" are Google parent Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Booking and Microsoft.
The EU last year imposed its first fines for breaking the DMA rule, hitting Meta and Apple with penalties of 200 million euros ($232 million) and 500 million euros respectively.
The fines have given rise to accusations by Washington that the EU is deliberately targeting American companies, which Brussels denies.
