WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 31: Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta testifies before the Senate Judiciary … More
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Meta’s antitrust case could result in the company divesting Instagram from its social media platforms. Despite Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s efforts to lobby the Trump administration, the Facebook parent company’s case against the Federal Trade Commission appears weak to me.
The FTC alleges Meta monopolizes the social networking market, and has argued that the company should not have been able to complete its acquisitions of Instagram – for $1 billion when it had 13 employees back in 2012 – and WhatsApp for $19 billion in 2014. The agency is seeking to “cleave the apps from Meta as a possible remedy,” reported CNBC.
Meta’s defense is: Despite including apps such as Snapchat, the FTC’s competitive analysis is flawed – excluding rivals such as TikTok and Apple’s iMessage, noted CNBC.
In 2020, Trump’s FTC initiated the suit against Meta. Despite contributing $1 million to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, settling for $25 million a lawsuit over Trump’s social media accounts being suspended after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, and offering $450 million to settle the antitrust case, the trial began on April 14, reported the Wall Street Journal.
Meta’s defense appears to be a weak one because the company’s relative market share is much higher than rivals’ and the social network operator uses its dominance to charge much higher prices for video advertisers.
Meta cites several reasons why the FTC case lacks merit. “The FTC’s lawsuit against Meta defies reality,” according to an April 16 email from a Meta spokesperson. “The evidence at trial will show what every 17-year-old in the world knows: Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp compete with Chinese-owned TikTok, YouTube, X, iMessage and many others.”
“More than 10 years after the FTC reviewed and cleared our acquisitions, the Commission’s action in this case sends the message that no deal is ever truly final. Regulators should be supporting American innovation, rather than seeking to break up a great American company and further advantaging China on critical issues like AI,” the spokesperson’s email added.
Meta’s Extra-Judicial Efforts To Settle The Antitrust Case
Outside of the courtroom, Meta has tried numerous ways to end this antitrust case. In March, Zuckerberg called FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson to offer $450 million to settle the antitrust case. The FTC rejected the offer – which was far below the $30 billion the FTC demanded and a “fraction of the value of Instagram and WhatsApp,” the Journal reported.
During the call, Zuckerberg expressed confidence — in the wake of his campaign contribution and settlement with the president — that Trump would intervene in the monopoly lawsuit. Ferguson said he would accept $18 billion plus a consent decree, Zuckerberg upped his offer to $1 billion, and a settlement was not reached, wrote the Journal.
Despite Zuckerberg’s efforts, Meta has been criticized by “the MAGA wing of the GOP” which “has blamed the company for Trump’s 2020 election loss,” according to the Journal.
Ferguson still fears Meta’s power Meta in the wake of acquiring Instagram and WhatsApp. The company has “a tremendous amount of power, power we all saw on full display in 2020,” Ferguson said in an April 14 Fox Business interview. “And so that’s what this case is about, is about addressing the power of Meta and making sure that the situation we had in 2020 can never arise again.”
Key Weaknesses In Meta’s Antitrust Argument
The FTC could prevail over Meta. The agency alleges Meta’s acquisitions harmed competition by eliminating rivals and Meta holds a dominant market share in social networking.
While the government’s argument that Meta’s acquisitions harmed competition is less compelling, the social network clearly dominates its industry – albeit while facing smaller rivals.
The FTC’s claim of Meta’s acquisition harming competition seems to hinge on Zuckerberg’s intent when Facebook acquired Instagram and WhatsApp.
One expert expected U.S. District Judge James Boasberg to weigh Zuckerberg’s intent for buying the companies and how rivals viewed them.
More specifically, the judge may assess whether Zuckerberg feared in 2012 that Instagram could evolve into a social network that would threaten Facebook and whether actual or potential rivals saw Instagram and WhatsApp as Facebook substitutes, former Republican chair of the FTC William Kovacic told NPR.
Meta argues the social networking industry is competitive and the company lacks monopoly power because it does not charge customers to use its social network. However, that argument strikes me as weak since what matters is Meta’s advertising market share and relative prices.
Yet the numbers suggest Meta has a big lead in social networking. For example, In 2025, Facebook and Instagram combined are expected to earn 36.3% and 27.5% of ad spend, respectively, according to RS Marketing. Other rivals have far less share – YouTube (15.5%) and TikTok, while growing rapidly, has 9.5% of the market.
Meta’s market share based on monthly active users is still significant – but smaller. In February 2025. Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger controlled 16%, 10%, 7% and 5% respectively of social media MAUs, according to Statista. YouTube (13%) and TikTok (8%) lagged significantly.
Meta’s advertising rates are much higher than those of rivals. Specifically, Facebook and Instagram charge $8.15 per thousand impressions to TikTok’s $2.97; YouTube’s $2.16, and Snapchat’s $6.43, according to Boston-based performance marketing firm GuptaMedia.
What Will Happen Next?
Zuckerberg may have foreshadowed the endgame about seven years ago – divesting Instagram and possibly WhatsApp. How so? “I’m beginning to wonder whether spinning Instagram out is the the only structure that will accomplish a number of important goals,” Zuckerberg wrote in a May 2018 email presented by FTC lawyers on April 15, noted CNBC.
“As calls to break up the big tech companies grow, there is a non-trivial chance that we will be forced to spin out Instagram and perhaps WhatsApp in the next 5-10 years anyway. This is one more factor we should consider,” Zuckerberg’s 2018 email also said.
