Meta wins antitrust lawsuit over its acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram

Core Points - A federal judge ruled against the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in its lawsuit against Meta, stating that the FTC did not prove that Meta formed a monopoly through its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp [1] - The judge concluded that Meta does not hold a monopoly in the relevant market of personal social networking services [1] - The FTC's lawsuit, initiated in 2020, claimed that Meta's ownership of Instagram, WhatsApp, and Facebook allowed it to illegally dominate the market [1] Market Definition - The judge found the "personal social networking services" market to be poorly defined, noting that the competitive landscape, including Meta's apps and its rivals, has been evolving [2] - The ruling highlighted that the absence of mention of TikTok in previous opinions indicates the shifting nature of competition in the market, with TikTok now being a significant competitor to Meta [2]