Meta has won a major US antitrust case, with a judge ruling that the company does not hold a monopoly in social networking. The decision means the tech giant will not be forced to spin off Instagram or WhatsApp.
The case, brought by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), could have required Meta to divest Instagram and WhatsApp, which it acquired in 2012 and 2014 respectively. The FTC had accused Meta of operating a 'buy or bury' strategy against competitors.
US District Judge James Boasberg issued the ruling on Tuesday, citing the rise of TikTok as evidence of competition. He also criticised the FTC for failing to consider YouTube as a meaningful competitor. 'Even if YouTube is out, including TikTok alone defeats the FTC’s case,' he wrote.
Meta’s chief legal officer, Jennifer Newstead, had previously described the case as 'absurd' and contrasted it with efforts to save Chinese-owned TikTok. The ruling contrasts with recent decisions against Google, which was found to have illegal monopolies in search and online advertising.
The FTC has also sued Amazon for anticompetitive practices, and the US Justice Department has filed a case against Apple. The judge noted that the FTC failed to prove Meta currently holds monopoly power, stating: 'The court’s verdict today determines that the FTC has not done so.'
