Tribunal demands clear, simple explanation of Meta's searches

At the latest tribunal hearing, Meta was told to give a detailed explanation of how it searched its data, because GovChat says it cannot check the evidence without knowing the full method.

- By Jamie Benjamin

The latest interlocutory hearing at the Competition Tribunal of South Africa in the long-running clash between GovChat and its subsidiary #LetsTalk, and tech giant Meta, owner of WhatsApp and Facebook, ended with a clear directive: Meta must lay bare a far more detailed and transparent search protocol, or risk undermining its defence.

GovChat, launched in 2018, built a civic-tech platform using WhatsApp's Business API (application programming interface) to let South Africans report municipal service breakdowns, apply for social support grants or liaise with government departments.

During Covid-19, it was used to manage high volumes of grant applications and citizen queries. According to data submitted to the tribunal, GovChat once claimed to serve up to 13 million South Africans.

The Competition Commission argued that removing GovChat would entrench WhatsApp's dominance, block a viable competitor and stifle innovation in digital civic services

In July 2020, WhatsApp, — unhappy with how GovChat used the API — signalled its intention to off-board GovChat and #LetsTalk, citing alleged violations of its data and user-protection policies. The reaction was swift: GovChat lodged a complaint with the Competition Commission of South Africa, which, in March 2022, formally referred Meta, WhatsApp and Facebook South Africa to the Competition Tribunal on charges of “exclusionary conduct” in breach of the national competition law.