Türkiye Moves against Meta over Threads-Instagram Data Sharing

FILE PHOTO: Meta and Facebook logos are seen in this illustration taken February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Meta and Facebook logos are seen in this illustration taken February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Türkiye Moves against Meta over Threads-Instagram Data Sharing

FILE PHOTO: Meta and Facebook logos are seen in this illustration taken February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Meta and Facebook logos are seen in this illustration taken February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Türkiye's competition authority imposed on Monday an interim measure on Meta Platforms Inc meant to hinder data sharing between the Instagram and Threads platforms as it investigates possible abuse of the company's dominant market position.
In December, the authority launched an investigation into Facebook parent Meta over a possible violation of competition law by linking its social media platforms Instagram and the newer Threads.
The authority said the interim measure would remain in place until a final decision is made, since the data obtained and merged through these two apps could "violate competition law and cause irreparable damage" in the market.
Separately, the Turkish authority fined Meta 4.8 million lira ($148,000) daily as part of a
separate investigation over a notification message that the company sends users about the sharing of data.
The notification about data sharing between the company's Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp services did not provide sufficient information and was not transparent enough, it said.
The user notification was also designed to guide users to approve data sharing which was not deemed sufficient to address anti-competition concerns, it added.
A Meta spokesperson did not immediately comment on the decisions.



ChatGPT Adds Shopping Help, Intensifying Google Rivalry

FILED - 18 April 2023, Berlin: On the monitor of a cell phone you can see the ChatGPT logo. Photo: Hannes P Albert/dpa
FILED - 18 April 2023, Berlin: On the monitor of a cell phone you can see the ChatGPT logo. Photo: Hannes P Albert/dpa
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ChatGPT Adds Shopping Help, Intensifying Google Rivalry

FILED - 18 April 2023, Berlin: On the monitor of a cell phone you can see the ChatGPT logo. Photo: Hannes P Albert/dpa
FILED - 18 April 2023, Berlin: On the monitor of a cell phone you can see the ChatGPT logo. Photo: Hannes P Albert/dpa

OpenAI announced Monday that ChatGPT is now helping users find products online, enhancing its challenge to Google amid regulatory pressure on the search giant's market dominance.

The new shopping capability further blurs the line between AI chatbots and search engines, signaling OpenAI's ambition to compete with Google in a market the latter has controlled for decades.

"Search has become one of our most popular and fastest growing features, with over 1 billion web searches just in the past week," the San Francisco-based company said in a post on X.

Rolled out on Monday, the update allows shoppers to find and compare items through natural conversation, then connect directly to merchants for purchases.

"Instead of scrolling through pages of results, you can simply start a conversation," OpenAI's post said, adding that users could also ask follow-up questions or compare products.

ChatGPT's shopping feature initially focuses on fashion, beauty, and home electronics categories. Product recommendations are personalized and come from the web, not advertisements, OpenAI said.

To counter increasing competition from AI chatbots, Google has integrated its own Gemini assistant into search results, providing AI-generated answers above traditional website links.

The rivalry intensified last week when an OpenAI executive testified the company would consider purchasing Chrome if Google were forced to sell the browser as part of an ongoing US antitrust case.