Brasilia, December 17 (RHC-teleSUR) -- Brazilians will be unable to use the popular WhatsApp text messaging and voice call application on their cellular phones for two days, a court announced Wednesday evening.

In a statement, the First Penal Court of Sao Bernardo do Campo said the 48-hour ban would begin at midnight, reported the EFE news service. It did not say why it was ordering the service to be shut down.

WhatsApp is one of the most popular communications services in the world, allowing users to send text messages and make phone calls using their mobile data, rather than using up the messages and minutes provided by their cell phone carrier. For that reason, companies in Brazil have sought to have the government impose limits on the application.

Soon after the ban was announced, Brazilians took to social media to complain. “WhatsApp” soon becoming a global trending topic on Twitter, with competitors seeking to capitalize on the outage.