Following an interim order against automatic data-sharing with Instagram issued by the Turkish Competition Authority (TCA), Meta is closing down Threads in Turkey on April 29. Linking Threads and Instagram without user consent, according to the TCA, “will lead to irreparable harms” and Meta “abused its dominant position” in the market by doing so. The linkage, according to the TCA, is largely done to give the firm more “market power.”
Instead of altering the integration between Instagram and Threads in the area, Meta is removing the fledgling social media app. There is no timeline for the company’s claim that this is only a temporary measure while it attempts to appeal the injunction. Meta advises Turkish users to either deactivate or completely remove their accounts in the interim. Posts and interactions made by deactivators will be reinstated “if Threads returns” to the nation.
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 without nuking their Instagram account, though Meta patched this several months back.
Meta also began promoting Threads posts on Facebook and Instagram without user consent, eventually allowing people to opt out 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, according to a report by TechCrunch. 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, to the tune of $160,000 each day.
