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By Sonny Aragba-Akpore
While we are yet to grapple with the fate of Tik Tok which President Donald Trump had asked its parent company Byte Dance of China to divest from it’s American operations or be banned,Meta Group,owners of Instagram and WhatsApp,is troubled over antitrust concerns.
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The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has taken the group to court over anti competition issues.
Specifically, the FTC wants Meta to divest from its two biggest companies in an antitrust trial that could redefine the future of social media.
And so Meta’s world is troubled as Mark Zuckerberg’s company could be forced to sell Instagram and WhatsApp if it loses the lawsuit that has just begun in the U.S.
Monopolization of social media
The FTC has accused Zuckerberg’s company of having bought both platforms to eliminate competition and maintain a monopoly on social media. If the court rules against them, it would be a historic blow to the tech giant.
Zuckerberg acquired Instagram in 2012, and then, two years later,(2014) completed his trio by buying WhatsApp. Facebook is the third leg of the trio and this easily makes the group the largest tech owner in the world.
Although these acquisitions were approved by the FTC itself at that time ,but now this lawsuit seeks to reverse that approval, arguing that the purchase was not for innovation but to “neutralize” emerging rivals like Instagram which was acquired in 2012 and thus take control of the entire market.
The FTC claims that Meta has used its financial muscle to block competition, buying up emerging apps instead of competing with them, and it has been doing this since 2008! Everything is based on 2012 emails where Zuckerberg had expressed concern about Instagram’s rapid growth compared to Facebook’s performance (which was his only app at the time). In those emails, Zuckerberg admitted it was better to buy than to compete. And so he did, acquiring the app years later.
“On the other hand, he also bought WhatsApp, and of course that reinforces the FTC’s accusation. Meta strengthened its control over the digital system, keeping these apps as separate platforms but under the same power structure” analysts reason.
Meta has not denied the purchases, even though it rejects having acted in an anti-competitive way, calling the case a “weak lawsuit that ignores reality,” since they believe they face strong competition from platforms like TikTok, YouTube or X among many other apps.
During the trial, Zuckerberg claimed he bought Instagram for its camera technology, not because the social network was on the rise, but the 2012 messages don’t seem to support that statement very well.
Shifting the balance in the digital market
In the likelihood that FTC wins this case, Meta could be forced to sell Instagram, WhatsApp, or both. This wouldn’t necessarily mean an immediate change for users, but it would shift the balance in the digital market, according to experts .
Digital sociologists think that Meta would make it easier to regulate social networks individually by the FTC. One of the major implications will be on things like content moderation, privacy, or the use of personal data.
“If it gets split, it would be easier for lawmakers, ensuring proper service to users” digital sociologists admit.
There are however fears of who buys if it gets to that . For instance If a controversial figure like Elon Musk or an investment fund takes control of Instagram, like what happened with Twitter (now X), it’s possible that many users would leave in large numbers for new alternatives that may emerge, like BlueSky.
“But if it falls into the hands of a discreet company, without major visible changes, it’s likely that most people will keep using it as they always have.”
Losing Instagram would be a catastrophe for Meta
Although Meta does not reveal exactly how much it earns from each app, it is estimated that Instagram generates around $37 million a year, surpassing Facebook’s revenue according to analysts.
“So of course, Zuckerberg’s eagerness to get out of this case is clear: they can’t afford to lose that income because it would be a catastrophe for Meta” another analyst submits.
The expectations are dicey because the court’s decision will not only affect Meta, but could also open the door to more lawsuits against other big platforms for similar monopoly practices. And at a time when the control of social networks is more questioned than ever, this case could define the future of the digital system in terms of free choice and regulations.
Instagram and WhatsApp which were acquired over a decade ago have become social powerhouses and easily the biggest platforms in that genre.
This looming antitrust trial will be the first big test of President Trump’s Federal Trade Commission’s ability to challenge Big Tech.
The lawsuit was first filed against Meta — then called Facebook — in 2020, during Trump’s first term. It claims the company bought Instagram and WhatsApp to squash competition and establish an illegal monopoly in the social media market.
FTC contends that Meta has maintained a monopoly by pursuing CEO Zuckerberg’s strategy, “expressed in 2008: ‘It is better to buy than compete.’ True to that maxim, Facebook has systematically tracked potential rivals and acquired companies that it viewed as serious competitive threats.”
U.S. antitrust laws are enforced by both the FTC’s Bureau of Competition and the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice. The agencies consult before opening any investigation. The Antitrust Division handles all criminal antitrust enforcement.
Why unfettered markets mean lower prices and more choices
The FTC,s Bureau of Competition enforces the nation’s antitrust laws, which form the foundation of a free market economy. The antitrust laws promote the interests of consumers; they support unfettered markets and result in lower prices and more choices.
The Federal Trade Commission Act and the Clayton Act, both passed by Congress in 1914, give the Commission authority to enforce the antitrust laws.
These laws prohibit anticompetitive mergers and business practices that seek to prevent hard-driving competition, such as monopolistic conduct, attempts to monopolize, and conspiracies in restraint of trade. The Bureau of Competition investigates potential law violations and seeks legal remedies in federal court or before the FTC’s administrative law judges. The Bureau also serves as a resource for policy makers on competition issues, and works closely with foreign competition agencies to promote sound and consistent outcomes in the international arena.
WhatsApp now primary means of net communication in many regions
WhatsApp (officially WhatsApp Messenger) is an American social media, instant messaging (IM), and voice-over-IP (VoIP) service owned by technology conglomerate Meta. It allows users to send text, voice messages and video messages, make voice and video calls, and share images, documents, user locations, and other content.
WhatsApp’s client application runs on mobile devices, and can be accessed from computers. The service requires a cellular mobile telephone number to sign up.
In January 2018, WhatsApp released a standalone business app called WhatsApp Business which can communicate with the standard WhatsApp client.
The service was created by WhatsApp Inc. of Mountain View, California, which was acquired by Facebook in February 2014 for approximately US$19.3 billion. It became the world’s most popular messaging application by 2015,and had more than two billion users worldwide by February 2020,confirmed four years later by 200 million new registrations per month.
By 2016, it had become the primary means of Internet communication in regions including the Americas, the Indian subcontinent, and large parts of Europe and Africa.
Instagram and Facebook reign supreme
Instagram is an American photo and short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters, be organized by hashtags, and be associated with a location via geographical tagging. Posts can be shared publicly or with preapproved followers. Users can browse other users’ content by tags and locations, view trending content, like photos, and follow other users to add their content to a personal feed.
A Meta-operated image-centric social media platform, it is available on iOS, Android, Windows 10, and the web. Users can take photos and edit them using built-in filters and other tools, then share them on other social media platforms like Facebook.
It supports 32 languages including English, Hindi, Spanish, French, Korean, and Japanese.
Instagram was originally distinguished by allowing content to be framed only in a square aspect ratio of 640 pixels to match the display width of the iPhone at the time.
In 2015, this restriction was eased with an increase to 1080 pixels. It also added messaging features, the ability to include multiple images or videos in a single post, and a Stories feature—similar to its main competitor, Snapchat, which allowed users to post their content to a sequential feed, with each post accessible to others for 24 hours.
As of January 2019, Stories were used by 500 million people daily. Instagram was launched for iOS in October 2010 by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger. It rapidly gained popularity, reaching one million registered users in two months, 10 million in a year, and one billion in June 2018.
In April 2012, Facebook acquired the service for approximately US$1 billion in cash and stock. The Android version of Instagram was released in April 2012, followed by a feature-limited desktop interface in November 2012, a Fire OS app in June 2014, and an app for Windows 10 in October 2016. Although often admired for its success and influence, Instagram has also been criticized for negatively affecting teens’ mental health, its policy and interface changes, its alleged censorship, and illegal and inappropriate content uploaded by users.
