FTC v. Meta: the US argued Meta has a monopoly in the “personal social networking” market, which it claims includes only Instagram, WhatsApp, Snapchat, and MeWe
The government wants to show the Meta CEO bought Instagram and WhatsApp to snuff out social media competition.
Politico Brendan Bordelon
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Discussion
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@naominix
Naomi Nix
on bluesky
He adds that the company has often got disparate signals from users on what they want: people say they want more content from friends and family but they often interact with content posted by people outside their networks. This goes directly to a core question: what market is fa…
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@naominix
Naomi Nix
on bluesky
A few takeaways from Zuck so far: —FTC lawyer Daniel Matheson has really pressed Zuck on the main goal of Facebook, using his own words and company documents. He argues that Facebook has always been about connecting friends and family. —Zuck says the goal is also to entertain …
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@naominix
Naomi Nix
on bluesky
Now, Matheson is focusing on Meta's mistakes in adapting to the mobile age. He shows Zuck a video of a 2012 interview he gave at a Techcrunch conference in which he says that one of the biggest mistakes they made was failing to write the code for native applications instead of u…
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@ericrosenberg@mastodon.social
Eric Rosenberg
on mastodon
@Techmeme So there's no such thing as X, Mastodon, BlueSky, LinkedIn, TikTok, or Reddit?
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@andymstone
Andy Stone
on threads
The FTC claims Snapchat & MeWe are Meta's only competitors and is desperately trying to keep actual competitors like TikTok, YouTube, iMessage, X out of the ring. Adding just TikTok and YouTube into the FTC's social media market definition gives Meta less than 30% market share.
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@vishwanathsarangkeller
Vishwanath Sarang Keller
on threads
Just me or are we all thinking what the hell is MeWe?
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@bbenedict33
Brendan Benedict
on x
Internal Meta doc that FTC showed bad for Meta's market def arguments: “Facebook, LinkedIn, and Nextdoor coexist in the U.S. with similar userbases but orthogonal graphs: Facebook connects friends and family, LinkedIn connects coworkers, Nextdoor connects neighbors.” #ftcvmeta
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@zamaan_qureshi
Zamaan Qureshi
on x
One hilarious piece from the FTC's trial against Meta right now: Meta arguing YouTube Shorts competes with TikTok and Reels 💀 [image]
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@jason_kint
Jason Kint
on x
FTC v Meta Day 1. Opening arguments for FTC laid out its case. As predicted, Meta tried to blow hole into market definition. This actually comes later in trial so not dwelling but will add some context at end. But first witness 1 was CEO Zuckerberg. Dead to rights on conduct. /1
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@modestproposal1
@modestproposal1
on x
brutal slide [image]
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@mikeisaac
Rat King
on x
two things: 1. i have been deviceless in a federal court all day and i think i loved it 2. Zuckerberg loosened up on stand, a real walk down memory lane, and it's expected to go into tomorrow too 3. i wanted to flog this more bc it was fun to go through hypotheticals [image]
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@bbenedict33
Brendan Benedict
on x
Last exhibit before the break is a screenshot of the prompt to sign up for a Facebook account - to connect with friends & family. Zuckerberg slowly losing credibility bit by bit. #ftcvmeta
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@emeraldrobinson
Emerald Robinson
on x
It's time to downsize Mark Zuckerberg, and break up Meta.
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@cernovich
@cernovich
on x
If Mark Zuckerberg skates from the FTC trial, he will ban every conservative on Facebook and Instagram and begin giving billions of dollars (like he was doing until last week) to far left wing terrorist organizations. Break up Meta now or the 🇺🇸 will pay the price later!
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@brianstelter
Brian Stelter
on x
@auzinea Zuckerberg is slated to be on the stand for up to 7 hours, which means his testimony will likely continue tomorrow [video]
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@matthewstoller
Matt Stoller
on x
A long series of questions on the re-write of Facebook services in 2010-2012 to become mobile apps. Zuckerberg spent two years trying to avoid the Apple and Android stores but ultimately couldn't. #FTCvMeta
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@leehepner
Lee Hepner
on x
This is incredibly damning evidence. Facebook acquired Instagram for a billion dollars then *explicitly sought to limit its growth* so that it wouldn't cannibalize Facebook. It's fair to wonder how there is even a dispute left for the court to decide in this trial. [image]
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@eric_seufert
Eric Seufert
on x
The FTC argues in its antitrust case against Meta that TikTok is not a genuine competitor to Meta's products. In a recent piece, I surfaced data from a recent paper that showed Meta ad prices increased by ~10% when TikTok went dark in January. This is partly explained by ad spe…
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@matthewstoller
Matt Stoller
on x
FTC asks if Meta is still built on a ‘social graph,’ Zuckerberg says he's not sure what that means but that it's a ‘core concept’ of Facebook. “The friend part has gone down quite a bit.” He wants the judge to see TikTok as a rival.
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@matthewstoller
Matt Stoller
on x
This back and forth is fascinating, since Zuck seems to be struggling with his decision in 2018 to emphasize something that wasn't as profitable (friends and family connections) for political reasons over viral stuff from third parties. Or maybe he's lying. Who knows?
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@bbenedict33
Brendan Benedict
on x
Zuckerberg v. Zuckerberg. In 2022, he writes, “Friend sharing has always been important to both FB and IG.” Supports FTC's personal social networking market. When asked about the email, though, he calls that a smaller part of Instagram. #ftcvmeta
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@brianstelter
Brian Stelter
on x
Surprise - Mark Zuckerberg has taken the stand on the first day of the Meta antitrust trial. He is testifying now, reading back old emails and posts he sent, as prompted by an FTC lawyer, per CNN's @auzinea at the courthouse https://www.cnn.com/...
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@matthewstoller
Matt Stoller
on x
Mark Zuckerberg is on the stand, the FTC lawyer is grilling him on documents showing the point of the service is to connect to friends. This is about market definition. #ftcvmeta
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r/NoShitSherlock
r
on reddit
Facebook isn't really for friends anymore, Mark Zuckerberg testifies in antitrust trial
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r/technology
r
on reddit
Facebook isn't really for friends anymore, Mark Zuckerberg testifies in antitrust trial
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@kenklippenstein
Ken Klippenstein
on bluesky
Zuckerberg literally said “It is better to buy than compete.” — How is this even a question! [image]
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@kyungsookl
Kyung Sook
on bluesky
I didn't understand why facebook suddenly reversed course, allowed DJT to return to facebook and Zuckerberg attended the inauguration. Now I understand. www.npr.org/2025/04/13/n...
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@firerock31
Andy Cheng
on threads
Hindsight is always 20/20 The FTC says Meta illegally built a social media monopoly by using a newer antitrust idea: “killer acquisitions”. Buying potential future rivals before they become a threat like Instagram & WhatsApp. If that holds up in court, it raises many questions:…
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@spyglass_feed
@spyglass_feed
on threads
If the government were to force Meta to sell off Instagram, the entire company is fucked.
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@alexeheath
Alex Heath
on x
I just watched the opening arguments for the FTC vs. Meta antitrust case in DC. The goal is to break up IG and WhatsApp. IMO, the FTC has an uphill battle in convincing the judge that Meta's only competition is Snap and MeWe(???) for the purpose of this case. To poke holes in …
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@briancalbrecht
Brian Albrecht
on x
2 reasons: 1. It's not 2012, so the court is facing the world in 2025. 2. It's not illegal to buy instead of build.
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@loudmouthjulia
Julia Alexander
on x
Ah yes, famous Meta competitors, eBay and Quora. [image]
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@choprausa
Rohit Chopra
on x
The @FTC should continue to resist efforts from the company to censor the trial or sidestep accountability through a cheap settlement.
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@jeffreywestling
Jeffrey Westling
on x
Not including TikTok as a competitor is wild, unless its just due to the ban/not ban/whatever is going on with it. Especially if the entire case is really centered on the Instagram acquisition.
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@katienotopoulos
Katie Notopoulos
on x
Ok fuck it, I'll all in on MeWe. It's got a totally inscrutable logon system and I have no idea what I'm doing but it's my new home
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@lukewgoldstein
Luke Goldstein
on x
These slides weren't posted online yet. Meta is selectively leaking court docs, contrary to the agreed terms it forced on FTC
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@andymstone
Andy Stone
on x
“...the FTC's entire case consists of convincing the Court that Instagram doesn't compete with TikTok. Which makes no sense.”
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@amyklobuchar
Amy Klobuchar
on x
Today the major antitrust trial against Meta kicks off. When dominant companies use their size to buy up their competition, consumers suffer. Strong antitrust enforcement like this is key to giving consumers more choice and strengthening our economy.
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@joel_kaplan
Joel Kaplan
on x
What became clear today is that the FTC's case hinges on the preposterous idea that Meta spends more time competing with some app called MeWe than with TikTok.
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@jason_kint
Jason Kint
on x
Meta is pumping out their confusion on antitrust market definition. Warning...uninformed tech press may regurgitate it. FTC actually has this later in trial. I'll be at desk around 6:30pm to explain. But Zuckerberg looks dead to rights on Insta deal which will climax in morning. …
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@adamkovac
Adam Kovacevich
on x
I joined @YahooFinance this morning to discuss the FTC's antitrust trial against Meta, starting today. The stakes go beyond Meta's breakup. If DOJ and FTC can successfully unwind deals that they initially approved, that's bad for startups, investors, and acquirers. [video]
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@morningsmaria
@morningsmaria
on x
FTC making sure Meta-like ‘monopoly’ can ‘never arise again’: Chairman Ferguson [video]
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@semaforben
Ben Smith
on x
How Trumpworld sees Meta
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@mrddmia
@mrddmia
on x
Mark Zuckerberg spent $400 million to chase Trump out of office in 2020. Then Biden Democrats subjected Trump to 4 years of lawfare. Zuckerberg thought he could spend $1 million after the 2024 election to buy antitrust amnesty. Looking forward to Zuckerberg's public testimony.
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@zamaan_qureshi
Zamaan Qureshi
on x
Let's get this started 🍿
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@stockmarketnerd
Brad Freeman
on x
Dear FTC chairman, $META is not a monopoly. Thanks. That is all. *posted on X*
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@bbenedict33
Brendan Benedict
on x
One key area of focus that FTC is previewing in its opening statement in Meta breakup trial - the funders. Many contemporaneous statements from Sequoia Capital on viability of Instagram and Whatsapp. #ftcvmeta
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@jason_kint
Jason Kint
on x
Seriously. Seriously. Meta/Facebook/Instagram wrote this in a press release today, “It's absurd that the FTC is trying to break up a great American company.” This is a company competing for worst reputation among the top 100 brands (Axios Harris 100).
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@johnmarknewman
John Mark Newman
on x
If you have a second today, send some good vibes to the @FTC trial team, squaring off in court against @Meta starting today. I've had the privilege of working w/ many of them. You won't find a harder-working, smarter group of civil servants anywhere. https://www.npr.org/...
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@stephenkentx
Stephen Kent
on x
America needs an effective FTC that watches out for monopolistic practices harming consumers, and this very dated case against Meta isn't it. https://consumerchoicecenter.org/ ...
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@econliberties
@econliberties
on x
“Despite Meta and Mark Zuckerberg's attempts to lobby their way out of accountability, there's no stopping nearly five years of bipartisan antitrust momentum.” Trial begins today in FTC v. Meta. Statement from @LeeHepner👇 [image]
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@leehepner
Lee Hepner
on x
If you shut down the movie theater, people will go to the restaurant instead. They may compete for foot traffic, but the movie theater doesn't compete on the quality of food. Importantly, even Meta and TikTok executives understand their own disjointed use cases. [image]
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r/NPR
r
on reddit
The biggest trial in Meta's history starts Monday. Here's what to know