An Indian tribunal temporarily suspended a five-year data sharing ban between WhatsApp and owner Meta Platforms, a major relief for the U.S. giant which had warned its advertising business will be affected.

WhatsApp has been granted interim relief, allowing data sharing with Meta for ads only. Other directives, including a 50% penalty payment and enhanced transparency on data sharing, remain enforced.

An Indian tribunal on Thursday suspended restrictions that would have barred WhatsApp from sharing user data with its parent company Meta, delivering a An Indian tribunal has suspended restrictions that would have barred WhatsApp from sharing user data with Meta.

An Indian appeals tribunal on Thursday put on hold the antitrust authority's five-year data sharing ban between WhatsApp and owner Meta Platforms' other applications such as Facebook and Instagram for advertising purposes.

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Thursday stayed the five-year ban imposed by competition watchdog CCI on data-sharing practices between WhatsApp and Meta for advertising purposes,