Meta must face FTC trial that could separate Instagram and WhatsApp

Meta must face the Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust lawsuit that accuses the company of dominating the social media industry through its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp, a DC District Court Judge ruled on Wednesday.

The FTC filed a lawsuit against Meta in 2020, alleging the company bought up rivals — Instagram and WhatsApp — in an attempt to stifle competition. Judge James Boasberg initially dismissed the FTC’s lawsuit in 2021, but the agency filed an amended complaint, which he ultimately let proceed.

Meta once again asked the court to dismiss the FTC’s case in April. Boasberg has now ruled largely in favor of the FTC, though he dismissed a claim that Meta acted anticompetitively by preventing developers from accessing its API unless they agreed not to compete with its apps.

In a statement to The Verge, Meta spokesperson Christopher Sgro said the company is “confident” the trial will show its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp were “good” for consumers. “More than 10 years after the FTC reviewed and cleared these deals, and despite the overwhelming evidence that our services compete with YouTube, TikTok, X, Apple’s iMessage, and many others, the Commission is wrongly continuing to assert that no deal is ever truly final, and businesses can be punished for innovating.”

Even though the FTC’s antitrust lawsuit was filed while President-Elect President Donald Trump was in office, his upcoming administration is expected to take a more lax approach to mergers and acquisitions — and major companies are taking notice. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, along with other Big Tech leaders, has already started to cozy up to Trump, who’s expected to replace FTC Chair Lina Khan.