A trial for anti-competitive practices opened Monday in Washington court against Mark Zuckerberg, president and founder of Meta, currently the world's third largest fortune.
The billionaire was called to the stand first. The consumer protection agency is suing the Californian giant, accused of having acquired Instagram and WhatsApp in order to eliminate potential competitors.
The complaint, initially filed five years ago during Donald Trump's first term, claims that Meta abused its dominant position when it bought Instagram in 2012 for $1 billion, then WhatsApp in 2014 for $19 billion.
The objective of the Federal Trade Commission will be to demonstrate that these acquisitions were motivated by a desire to stifle competition. If Meta were to lose this lawsuit, the company could be forced to separate from the two platforms. VS
This case is one of five major antitrust proceedings initiated in recent years by the US government in the technology sector, targeting monopolistic behavior. This trial will last eight weeks.
