The FTC is suing Facebook to unwind its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp

  • Thread starter Thread starter The Verge RSS
  • Start date Start date
T

The Verge RSS

Guest
Author: Nick Statt

acastro_180406_1777_facebook_Congress_0001.0.jpg

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

On Wednesday, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a massive antitrust lawsuit against Facebook, claiming the social media giant has harmed competition by buying up smaller companies like Instagram and WhatsApp to squash the threat they posed to its business. Forty-seven other state and regional attorneys general are joining the suit.

The lawsuit centers on Facebook’s history of acquisitions starting, particularly its $1 billion purchase of Instagram in 2011. In emails revealed by the House of Representatives’ antitrust subcommittee hearing this past summer, Zuckerberg characterized his intent to buy Instagram in emails to his David Ebersman, then Facebook’s chief financial officer, as both a way to neutralize a competitor...

Continue reading…

Continue reading...