This decision is based on Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (1). 5 Commission Press Release IP/17/1369 of May 18, 2017. This decision is based on Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 ( 1 ) . Even if Facebook wanted to show ads to WhatsApp users, both agencies reasoned, there would still be plenty of other alternatives available to advertisers. See Ocello, Sjödin and Subočs (2015), supra 6, at pp 1-3 for a case discussion. On 3 October 2014, the Commission decided not to oppose the above notified concentration and to declare it compatible with the internal market. Six years later, in 2014, the EU Commission and the FTC approved the Facebook/WhatsApp merger. (2) European Commission decision of October 3 2014, COMP/M.7217 – Facebook/WhatsApp. Apparently, financial supervision is the optimal solution to regulate too big to fail banks in spite of some problems that may the effectiveness of this strategy. Facebook (via Facebook Messenger) and WhatsApp both offer applications for smartphones (so-called "apps") … European Commission - Press Release details page - European Commission Press release Brussels, 3 October 2014 The European Commission has authorised, under the EU Merger Regulation, the proposed acquisition of WhatsApp Inc. by Facebook, Inc., both of the United States. See also European Commission - Press release, Mergers: Commission approves acquisition of … I recently published an article about the possible role of EU merger control regime to regulate ‘too big to fail banks’. 2 European Commission, Case COMP/M.7217 Facebook/Whatsapp 3 October 2014. 11. 4 Facebook/WhatsApp, Case COMP/M.7217, Commission decision of October 3, 2014, paragraph 135. (3) Matousek/Weiss/Gassler , Zusammenschlusskontrolle – Neuer Transaktionswerttest , ecolex 2017, 388 ff. (3) Matousek/Weiss/Gassler, Zusammenschlusskontrolle – Neuer Transaktionswerttest, ecolex 2017, 388 ff. The Notifying Party submitted a reply on 18 June 2014. The Commission ultimately concluded that the transaction would not give rise to serious competition concerns, and it issued a clearance decision on 3 October 2014 (Case COMP/M.7217). It would have been notified to three member states (United Kingdom, Spain and Cyprus) and thus fulfilled the conditions set out in Art 4(5) EUMR. 3 octobre 2014, la Commission a décidé de ne pas s’opposer à la concentration notifiée susmentionnée et de la déclarer compatible avec le marché intérieur. (2) European Commission decision of October 3 2014, COMP/M.7217 – Facebook/WhatsApp. WhatsApp would be considered a social networking platform and thus a competitor of ... 7 Commission decision of 3 October 2014 in Case M.7217 –Facebook/WhatsApp. 3 ibid [184] – [186]. Subject: Case M.7217 – Facebook/ WhatsApp Commission decision pursuant to Article 6(1)(b) of Council Regulation No 139/20041 (1) On 29 August 2014, the European Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article …