A federal judge has dismissed a major antitrust lawsuit against Meta, ruling that the company does not hold a monopoly in the social networking market. The decision prevents a potential court-ordered breakup that could have forced the tech firm to divest its Instagram and WhatsApp platforms.
The case, brought by U.S. regulators, argued that Meta’s acquisitions of these platforms were anticompetitive. The lawsuit contended that the company employed a strategy of either purchasing emerging competitors or using its market dominance to suppress them. Instagram, which contributes substantially to Meta’s revenue, and WhatsApp, the globally dominant messaging application, were central to the legal challenge.
In his ruling, the judge noted that the competitive environment has transformed significantly since the case was initially filed. He specifically highlighted the emergence of new platforms, particularly TikTok, as evidence of vigorous competition within the social media sector. The court also criticized regulators for failing to adequately account for the competitive influence of other major digital platforms in their market analysis.
The verdict represents a significant legal victory for Meta and marks a setback for broader regulatory efforts to curb the power of major technology corporations. This outcome contrasts with recent judicial findings against other tech giants in separate antitrust proceedings concerning their respective market dominances.
The ruling concluded that while regulators argued Meta maintained a monopoly by competing against a narrow set of long-standing rivals, they failed to demonstrate that the company continues to hold such dominant market power in the current, more diversified digital landscape.
