Norway to Fine Meta Daily Over Privacy Violations; Amazon UK Down 1 Million Mobile Users

by Hannah Dillon on 17th Jul 2023 in News

In today's ExchangeWire news digest: Norway threatens to fine Meta daily over privacy breaches; Amazon UK loses one million users as its competitors grow; and EU regulators drop their investigation of payments firm Global Blue.

Meta could receive daily fines in Norway

Norway’s data protection authority has stated it will issue Meta Platforms with daily fines unless the company remedies its privacy breaches. Datatilsynet says that the Facebook owner cannot harvest user data in Norway for targeted advertising, with the regulator threatening daily fines of one million Kroner (~£75,910) between 4th August and 3rd November this year if the company does not comply. Tobias Judin, head of Datatilsynet's international section, said "It is so clear that this is illegal that we need to intervene now and immediately. We cannot wait any longer."

Amazon UK drops one million mobile users

New research has revealed that Amazon UK’s mobile user base dropped by one million at the start of the year. Global Wireless Solutions’ (GWS) analytics also revealed that competitor platform Temu, which entered the UK market in April this year, has seen mobile users climb to 3.5 million. Fast-fashion giant Shein also witnessed strong growth, doubling its customers in the UK within the last six months.

EU calls off Global Blue investigation

Payments company Global Blue is no longer under investigation in the EU. The company was subject to a two-year preliminary probe by the European Commission after a rival firm accused it of anticompetitive behaviour. In 2021, Refundit claimed Global Blue had shared its commission with high-end retailers to organise exclusive deals, in addition to obfuscating customer fees. On Monday (17th July), the company announced “no remediation actions or fines” were issued and that it had “fully co-operated” with the Commission throughout the investigation.