• Data Protection

  Facebook moves to dismiss the US government’s antitrust case

  Posted by Ami on 11 March 2021 at 1:52 pm

  In two motions filed Wednesday, Facebook called on the courts to dismiss a pair of sweeping competition cases brought on by the federal government and a coalition of states.

  The Federal Trade Commission and a group of state attorneys general filed separate lawsuits against Facebook last December accusing the tech giant of engaging in anti-competitive behavior. The two lawsuits make similar claims, alleging that Facebook bought Instagram and WhatsApp in order to squash the threat the two apps posed to the company’s business. Additionally, the attorneys general accused Facebook of using its market dominance to stifle the growth of competing services.

  The FTC’s case also calls for the courts to unwind Facebook’s acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp into separate companies once again.

  In Facebook’s motion to dismiss the cases, it claims the lawsuits allege that the two nascent apps were “potential” competitors, rather than a pressing and actual threat to Facebook’s business. The FTC declined to comment.

  “Facebook is wrong on the law and wrong on our complaint,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement to The Verge Wednesday. “We are confident in our case, which is why almost every state in this nation has joined our bipartisan lawsuit to end Facebook’s illegal conduct. We will continue to stand up for the millions of consumers and many small businesses that have been harmed by Facebook’s unlawful behavior.”

  Ami replied 3 years, 6 months ago 1 Member · 0 Replies
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