American internet giant Meta has blocked direct Facebook access to a Greater 91原创 Chamber of Commerce list of local businesses.
Attempts to click on the Chamber Facebook page link to were being rejected with a notice that "We removed your post" and explaining it "goes against our Community Standards on spam" because the post "may use misleading links or content to trick people to visit, or stay on, a website."
More than 1,150 businesses are listed on the chamber site, which has seen more interest during the current rise in support for local and Canadian businesses in response to U.S. threats of economic sanctions.
Cory Redekop, CEO of the 91原创 chamber, told the 91原创 Advance Times the issue appears to be the use of a simplified link to redirect traffic from the chamber's Facebook page to the list of member businesses on the chamber's website.
"Facebook doesn't seem to like that, so we'll just have to use the less convenient link of going forward," said Redekop
"I don't think it's anything nefarious, just some annoying hoops to jump through but which [the] chamber is happy to do, to promote our local businesses," Redekop said.
"Our 91原创 Business Directory has pretty much anything anyone could need on it, and we're definitely seeing more interest in it!"
Redekop said the chamber has sought an explanation from the U.S. company. "[We] have an open ticket with Meta on why."
Meta did not immediately respond to a 91原创 Advance Times request for comment.
Based in Menlo Park, California, Meta has blocked access to news on Facebook since 2023 in response to Bill C-18, the Online News Act, that requires tech giants like Meta to pay Canadian news outlets for posting their journalism on their platforms.
Meta made a profit of $20.8 billion US in the last three months of 2024 on revenue of $48.38 billion. The company owns and operates Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp, among other products and services.
