Facebook to appoint local Turkey representative

Facebook on Monday agreed to appoint a formal representative in Turkey, the Silicon Valley-based company announced.

In a statement, the social media giant said it would be assigning a legal entity in the country in a bid to comply with new legislation enacted last year.

"While taking this decision, we would like to underline the importance of our platform as a place where users can exercise their right to freedom of expression," it added.

Last year, Turkey imposed a fine of 40 million Turkish liras ($5.43 million) on multiple social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, for not complying with the social media law.

The law requires platforms that are accessed over a million times per day in Turkey to appoint local representatives.

It includes other penalties as well, including a ban on Turkish firms listing ads with the platforms, that are to kick in if under continued noncompliance with the measures.

Facebook's latest decision came a day before the ad ban would have been imposed.

So far, Russian social media site VKontakte (VK), YouTube, TikTok, Dailymotion, LinkedIn and Instagram have decided to assign local offices in the country.

As part of the legislation, social media firms must respond to requests by the Turkish government in the Turkish language and must answer requests concerning personal and privacy rights within 48 hours.

The platforms should also publish semi-annual reports on their response rates to such requests.

Social networks that do not comply with court orders to remove illegal content are to be subject to penalties, according to the law.

In addition, it also holds social media companies to take measures to host Turkey-based users' data in-country.