Could this landmark antitrust case be the end of Meta‘s dominance?

On 14 April, Monday, after a nearly six-year investigation the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) antitrust trial against Meta begins in a legal battle that could change the trajectory of the future of the tech giant.

According to The New York Times, this case — Federal Trade Commission v. Meta Platforms — will, for the first time, try to stretch theories of US antitrust law to include what regulators are calling a “buy or bury” strategy.

Judge James Boasberg of the US District Court for the District of Columbia will begin considering a landmark monopoly case involving Meta questioning wheather it broke the law to maintain dominance by acquiring the start-ups and competition that stood in its way?

Lawyers representing the FTC and Meta are set to present their opening statements before Judge Boasberg, kicking off a trial likely to run for seven to eight weeks, reported The Hindustan Times.

The case will involve extensive evidence and testimony from multiple witnesses and the government is expected to call Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, former COO Sheryl Sandberg, and Instagram head Adam Mosseri to the stand, reported NPR.

Meta spokesperson Christopher Sgro stated the FTC’s lawsuit “defies reality” and reiterated that the company operates in a highly competitive social media market.

The US competition watchdog says Meta, which owns Facebook, bought Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014 to kill competition and create a monopoly, the BBC reported.

The government argues that Meta followed a “buy or bury” strategy in its acquisitions, targeting companies it saw as threats, either by acquiring them or driving them out of business. The FTC argues Meta broke the law to acquire competitors and maintain its monopoly in social networking.

Regulators are seeking to force Meta to divest Instagram and WhatsApp to loosen Meta’s grip on the social media industry, by unding its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp.

Meta hasn’t given up on settling the case. The Wall Street Journal reported that Zuckerberg personally lobbied President Trump at the White House to urge the FTC to drop the case, a claim Meta denied.

The first significant tech case prosecuted by the Trump administration, it could reshape the US antitrust landscape as companies will face intense scrutiny over mergers and acquisitions.

The case was first filed during Donald Trump’s first presidency, gained momentum during Joe Biden’s adminstration, and is now heading to trial under the leadership of FTC chairman Andrew Ferguson.

Mark Zukerberg and Donald Trump have a history together widely scrutinized. Meta contributed $1m (£764,400) to Trump’s inaugural fund. In January it had announced Ultimate Fighting Championship Fighter (UFC) boss Dana White, a close Trump ally, would join its board of directors, reported Firstpost.

The company also announced that it was dismissing independent fact-checkers, drawing heavy backlash from experts and analysts as well as public scrutiny.

The US Department of Justice in 2024 won an antitrust suit against Google for monopolizing internet search, and a trial to determine how to remedy that monopoly is slated to start on 21 April. Google is also awaiting a judge’s decision in a separate trial over claims that it illegally squashed competition in the ad tech market.

The DoJ also sued Apple over claims that its tightly knit system of devices and software makes it challenging for consumers to leave. The FTC also sued Amazon, accusing it of illegally protecting a monopoly in online retail. Those cases are expected to go to trial next year.