Big Tech Under Fire! President Tinubu Orders Massive Probe Into Meta, Google, And X!.

President Bola Tinubu has ordered the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) to launch an investigation into major global tech firms and Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) platforms. This directive, initiated following a petition from the Nigerian Press Organisation, aims to address concerns regarding anti-competitive practices and the unauthorized use of media content.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

• Scope of Investigation: The FCCPC will examine allegations against entities such as Meta, Alphabet (Google), and . The inquiry focuses on potential market dominance, unfair competition, and the unauthorized scraping of copyrighted journalistic content to train AI models.

• Media Industry Concerns: Nigerian media stakeholders, including the Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria, the Nigeria Union of Journalists, the Broadcasting Organisations of Nigeria, and the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers, claim these practices undermine the commercial viability of local news organizations and infringe upon content rights.

• Regulatory Approach: FCCPC Executive Vice Chairman Tunji Bello has committed to a transparent, evidence-based process. He emphasized that the inquiry is not a presumption of guilt but a fact-finding mission to ensure compliance with the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act of 2018. All parties will be given a fair opportunity to respond.

• International and Historical Context: The move follows a previous $220 million fine imposed by the FCCPC on Meta in 2025 for data privacy violations—a decision currently under appeal. Additionally, the commission noted that South African news organizations recently secured a compensation agreement with Google following a similar probe by the South African Competition Commission.