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Brussels - Facebook, the world's most popular social network, will win unconditional EU regulatory approval for its $19bn offer for mobile messaging startup WhatsApp, two people familiar with the matter said on Thursday.
The landmark deal, the largest in Facebook's 10-year history, will give the company a firm foothold in the fast-growing mobile messaging market and pit it against telecoms companies.
"It's unconditional clearance," one of the people said, declining to be named because the decision by the European Commission is not yet public.
The companies convinced the Commission that the deal had no anti-competitive effect and therefore concessions were not necessary, the sources said.
Commission spokesman Antoine Colombani declined to comment. The European Union competition authority has set an October 3 deadline for its decision.
US regulators gave the green light for the deal in April, telling WhatsApp to stick to its current privacy practices after the merger, including not to use users' personal data for targeted ads.
The deal has drawn criticism from the telecoms industry, worried about the potential competitive threat.
