All you need to know about the Facebook antitrust lawsuit

A federal judge tossed out antitrust lawsuits against social media giant Facebook. The dual antitrust suits threatened its acquisition of Instagram and WhatsApp. All you need to know about antitrust lawsuits against FB and the way ahead after a US court’s verdict on the case. (Image: News18 Creative)

In December 2020, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and a coalition of more than 40 states brought two parallel lawsuits against Facebook on antitrust concerns. (Image: News18 Creative)

Under US’s antitrust laws, a company is a violator if it has used restrictive contracts to protect its dominant position, stifle competition and thus harm consumers. (Image: News18 Creative)

Instead of competing on the merits, Facebook used its power to suppress competition; FB’s acquisition of Instagram and WhatsApp is particularly under scrutiny. (Image: News18 Creative)

In July 2020, Zuckerberg’s internal emails boasting about acquiring competitors were revealed during the Congress hearing on anti-trust issues. (Image: News18 Creative)

Excerpts from Mark Z’s email to a colleague (written in April 2012). (Image: News18 Creative)

Excerpts from Mark Z’s email to a colleague (written in April 2012). (Image: News18 Creative)

Excerpts from Mark Z’s email to a colleague (written in April 2012). (Image: News18 Creative)

The ruling does not signal the end of the legal road for the FTC. The agency could file an amended complaint within the next 30 days and continue litigation. (Image: News18 Creative)

Within 12 hours of the ruling, the market value of FB exceeded $1 trillion for the first time. (Image: News18 Creative)

In the year 1998 the US Justice Department (DoJ) alleged that Microsoft, as the owner of a dominant personal computer operating system, was using its power to block the potential threat from competition. (Image: News18 Creative)

FTC’s lawsuits against Facebook may not be able to accomplish anything to limit the power of Facebook or Google any time soon, but they’ve triggered a conversation. Debates on the need to modernize America’s antitrust laws have begun and it might make a difference over time. (Image: News18 Creative)