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(Updated paragraph 7 with new quote from Meta) by Jody Godoy
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is seeking to revive its case accusing Meta Platforms META.O , Facebook’s parent company, of strengthening an illegal monopoly by acquiring Instagram and WhatsApp, an FTC spokesperson said Tuesday.
The case is part of a crackdown on Big Tech that President Donald Trump began during his first term. Despite a dismissal decision issued last year, “our position has not changed,” said Joe Simonson, spokesperson for the FTC.
“Meta violated our competition laws when it acquired Instagram and WhatsApp. As a result, American consumers suffered from Meta’s monopoly,” Joe Simonson said.
Facebook bought Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014. The FTC did not seek to block the transactions at the time, but filed a lawsuit in 2020, alleging that Meta, then known as Facebook, had a monopoly on U.S. platforms used to share content with friends and family.
The agency sought to force Meta to restructure or sell Instagram and WhatsApp to restore competition, saying the company spent billions of dollars on the acquisitions to eliminate nascent competitors. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in Washington ruled in November that the company does not currently have a monopoly because it faces competition from TikTok.
“The district court’s decision to reject the FTC’s arguments in this case is correct and recognizes the fierce competition we face. Meta will continue to focus on innovation and investment in America,” Meta spokesperson Andy Stone said in a post Tuesday on the social media site X.
