The Antitrust authority opens proceedings against Facebook

the ROME - the Proceedings of the Antitrust against Facebook. The U.s. giant has not in fact given effect to the requirements of the Authority, that on the 29th of November 2018 had to be arranged in a series of changes to the indications given to the users. It is the authority in a note, explaining that the proceedings instituted may lead to the imposition of a pecuniary administrative sanction of up to € 5 million. "With this decision, the Authority had verified the incorrectness of the commercial practice of Facebook failure to deliver adequate information to the consumers, at the time of registration to the social network, collection, and use for commercial purposes the data supplied by them and, more in general, the purposes of remuneration underlying the service, and vice versa, emphasizing the gratuity. With the consequence of inducing the above-mentioned users to take a transactional decision that otherwise would not have taken".

The decision, explains the Antitrust laws, it was based on the assessment by the wealth of information constituted by the data of the users of Facebook, because of the profiling of the same for commercial use and for marketing purposes, acquires an economic value that is suitable to configure the existence of a relationship of consumption, even in the absence of the consideration money.

The measure was confirmed by the Tar. In addition to sanction Facebook for 5 million euro, the Authorities had prohibited the further spread of the deceptive practice and ordered that the company should publish a corrective statement on the homepage of the company website for Italy, the app Facebook, and on the personal page of each user registered. In fact, the phrase on the home page of Facebook "is free and always will be" has been removed, but the consumer that wants to register to the social network, however, continues, highlights the Antitrust laws, not to be informed by the company, with a clarity and immediacy that, with regard to the collection and use of their data for purposes of remuneration. It is also clear that Facebook has not published the declaration of amendment.

"The Republic will fight always in defense of the freedom of information, to its readers and to all those who have at heart the principles of democracy and civil coexistence"

Carlo VerdelliABBONATI REPUBLIC© Reproduction reserved Observers