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 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 appeals court temporarily halted an antitrust ruling that fined WhatsApp and prohibited the messenger from sharing user data with other firms and products owned by parent Meta Platforms Inc.

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.