Big Trouble for Meta – Are Instagram and WhatsApp at Risk?
Big Trouble for Meta – Could Instagram and WhatsApp Slip Out of Zuckerberg's Hands?. Mark Zuckerberg's troubles may increase due to the anti-trust lawsuit filed by the FTC on Meta. The deal made by the company about a decade ago is in danger, due to which the company's revenue may suffer a huge loss.
Ankush Pandey
The acquisition of WhatsApp and Instagram done about a decade ago is becoming a noose around Meta's neck. On Monday (April 15), the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) asked sharp questions to the company's CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, about this deal. Recently, the Federal Commission has declared the Instagram and WhatsApp deals done by Meta in 2012 and 2014 as illegal.
The antitrust case has been heard in the Tribunal Court since April 15. If the Federal Commission cancels this deal with Meta, then Mark Zuckerberg may lose two big social media platforms, Instagram and WhatsApp.
Here are the details of Meta's proposed monthly fee for using Facebook and Instagram without ads.
Mark Zuckerberg clarified his stand
During the hearing in the tribunal court on Monday, the company's CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, put forth his stand and said that this acquisition made a decade ago was to improve the user experience and enhance innovation. During this time, Meta's platforms have improved over time.
Employees are concerned that Meta's AI chatbots would acquire personal information.
Zuckerberg claimed that over time, its 'interest' part has become more developed than the friend part. Today users are engaging in the content of groups and areas of larger interest. Meta's purpose is to maintain connections with friends and family members.
FTC made serious allegations
The FTC's top litigator, Daniel Matheson, in his opening remarks, brought Meta's three platforms Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, into the dock and said that these apps have left no reasonable alternatives for users. Also, Meta accused the company of acquiring Instagram and WhatsApp only to prevent any other competitor from emerging.
This is the reason why the FTC should look at them as a personal social networking market platform through which users connect with their friends and family.
The FTC and Meta had a tussle in court for about an hour, in which the FTC presented a series of internal emails made in 2012 before the court and said that Facebook had bought Instagram to neutralize its competitors. However, Zuckerberg responded by saying that regulators had approved the acquisition of Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014.
It is not right to challenge this deal after more than a decade on the basis of old emails. In this case, Mark Zuckerberg will have to take his stand in court on Tuesday, i.e., today.
Employees are concerned that Meta's AI chatbots would acquire personal information.
Will Instagram and WhatsApp be closed?
If the FTC wins its case in this case, Meta may be forced to shut down Instagram and WhatsApp. Due to this, their years of integration may end and the company's lucrative advertising model may suffer a setback.
Let us tell you that in 2025, Instagram alone is expected to contribute more than half of Meta's US advertising revenue. The trial at Meta is expected to last approximately eight weeks.
