Meta Triumphs in Landmark $6B FTC Antitrust Case, Retains WhatsApp & Instagram
Meta Platforms Inc. scored a major victory on Tuesday in a pivotal federal antitrust case. The case could have compelled the tech behemoth to divest Instagram and WhatsApp, two of its most lucrative assets.
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ruled that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) failed to demonstrate that Meta holds an illegal monopoly in social networking. This ruling deals a substantial blow to federal regulators who have been pursuing the case for five years. The FTC had contended that Meta systematically acquired potential competitors to maintain dominance, citing CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s 2008 strategy: “It is better to buy than compete.”
“The landscape that existed only five years ago when the Federal Trade Commission brought this antitrust suit has changed markedly,” Boasberg wrote. He pointed out that TikTok now “holds center stage as Meta’s fiercest rival.” The judge emphasized that the social media environment has evolved dramatically since the lawsuit was filed in 2020, making it difficult to define Meta’s competitive market boundaries.
Meta’s victory comes at a time when the company faces fierce competition from TikTok and other platforms. The judge ruled that these rivals prevent Meta from holding monopoly power. This decision represents a massive win for the company, which could have lost Instagram—one of its primary revenue drivers—and WhatsApp, serving billions of users globally.
Source: Bloomberg