Meta CEO Mark Zukerberg|Alessio Jacona|CC BY-SA 2.0
Meta’s acquisition of Instagram and WhatsApp are under scrutiny after a judge greenlit a Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust lawsuit accusing the company of dominating the social media industry through the deals.
The FTC claims that Meta bought Instagram and WhatsApp to eliminate potential competition and maintain its dominance instead of innovating its own products, Messenger and Facebook Camera.
The Facebook parent says that regulators cleared its acquisitions a decade ago. It also pointed out that the company faces competition from TikTok, X, YouTube, and LinkedIn.
The lawsuit was initially filed in 2020 during the Trump presidency, but a judge dismissed it. Lina Khan refiled the case in 2021 with amendments, and the judge ruled in favor of the commission.
The social media giant bought Instagram in 2012 for $1 billion and Whatsapp in 2014 for $19 billion. If Meta loses the trial, it may have to sell the two platforms.
No trial date has been set yet, and a detailed court order is expected soon.
How can the Trump administration affect the FTC?
The President-elect has previously called for breaking up large tech companies to foster competition and innovation and reduce their influence.