Beautiful Virgin Islands

Sunday, Jul 12, 2026

Facebook says federal, state antitrust lawsuits not credible, files motions to dismiss

Facebook says federal, state antitrust lawsuits not credible, files motions to dismiss

Company says complaints 'do not credibly claim' that its conduct harmed consumers or competition

Facebook on Wednesday filed motions to dismiss antitrust lawsuits that the Federal Trade Commission and 48 state attorneys general brought against the tech giant in December.

The tech giant said in a statement that the FTC and state attorneys general did not make credible claims that Facebook harmed competition and consumers in violation of U.S. antitrust laws.

"You only have to look at your phone to know that the government’s assertion that Facebook monopolizes 'personal social networking services' doesn’t make sense," a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement to FOX Business.


The spokesperson named TikTok, iMessage, Twitter, Snapchat, LinkedIn, YouTube "and countless others" that compete with Facebook for consumers' "time and attention every day."

"Over the many years since the government cleared the Instagram and WhatsApp mergers, this competition has only gotten more fierce, and consumers have benefitted enormously from Facebook's investments in these free apps," the spokesperson said, adding that the government is trying to "rewrite history with its unprecedented lawsuit."


The FTC suit asserts that Facebook has engaged in a "systematic strategy" to eliminate its competition, including by purchasing smaller up-and-coming rivals like Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014.

The state lawsuit spearheaded by New York Attorney General Letitia James similarly accuses Facebook of using its vast wealth to acquire rival social media platforms capable of challenging its dominance and of utilizing third-party developers to build its own user base, only to shut down those that became threats to its business.

"Facebook is wrong on the law and wrong on our complaint," James said in a statement to FOX Business. "We are confident in our case, which is why almost every state in this nation has joined our bipartisan lawsuit to end Facebook’s illegal conduct. We will continue to stand up for the millions of consumers and many small businesses that have been harmed by Facebook’s unlawful behavior."

James noted during a December press conference that Facebook acquired Instagram for $1 billion "when the company did not even have a cent in revenue" and argued that its purchase of WhatsApp for $19 billion was far beyond what industry analysts deemed to be market value for the messaging app.

The attorneys general claim Facebook’s business practices are predatory and anti-competitive in nature. James said at the time that the coalition would coordinate with the FTC on ongoing legal action, James added.

The FTC did not immediately respond to an inquiry from Fox News.

Big Tech companies are facing growing opposition from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle on the power they have amassed over the past decade. There's little likelihood the pressure will ease up. President Joe Biden has said that a breakup of tech giants should be seriously considered.

Lawmakers have previously pressed Facebook on its 2012 and 2014 purchases of Instagram and WhatsApp, respectively, which the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) vetted at the time. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and the company's lawyers have previously defended the company's purchases of WhatsApp and Instagram.

Critics say such tactics quash competition and could limit viable alternatives for consumers looking, for instance, for comparable services that do less tracking for targeted advertising. Businesses, including mom and pop shops, might have to pay more for ads if they have fewer choices to reach consumers online.

The lawsuits could take years to resolve.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
The AI Invoice Shock: Layoffs Didn't Save Managers Money — They Cost Them More
Concern: Sexually Transmitted Bacterium Among Men Develops Antibiotic Resistance
Following Massive Investor Demand: SK Hynix Raises 26.5 Billion Dollars on Nasdaq
Passenger Partially Pulled Out of Ryanair Jet After Cabin Window Fails Mid-Flight
After Four Years, and Under a Heavy Veil of Secrecy: King Charles Meets His Grandchildren, Harry and Meghan's Children
Severe Heatwave Drives Dangerous Ground-Level Ozone Pollution Across Two Thirds of European Union
Westminster in Freefall as Farage's By-Election Gamble Triggers Broader Systemic Crises
Institutional Fractures and Political Volatility Reshape Britain's Domestic Landscape
Deadly Fire, Health Emergencies and Political Upheaval Shape a Volatile Global News Cycle
Flight Instructor Jumped to His Death — Student Landed the Plane: "You Know What You Need to Do"
The Physical and Electronic Barriers Disrupting Domestic Wireless Networks
France and Morocco Open World Cup Quarter-Finals as Collina Defends Refereeing
Prince Harry Suffers Major Court Defeat in Legal Battle Against Daily Mail Publisher
Bonnie Tyler, Welsh Singer Behind Total Eclipse of the Heart, Dies at 75
Tech Pulse: The Future of AI and Screen Culture
Global News Briefing: Escalating Geopolitical Tensions and Corporate Shakeups
Global News Brief: Escalating Conflicts, Public Health Crises, and World Cup Drama
Federal Financial Framework Shifts as Treasury Launches Universal Savings Program for Minors
French Court Allows Le Pen to Run for Presidency, but with an Electronic Tag: "I Will Appeal, and I Will Run"
$1.4 Trillion: The Lawsuit That Could Crush Meta
Europe's Growing Struggle with Extreme Heat and Air Conditioning
UK Daily Briefing: Legal Developments and Social Issues
Political Turmoil and Rising Costs
Anthropic Reengineers Agentic Architecture to Shift Autonomous Workplace Automation to the Cloud
Logic Flaw in Windows 11 Permission Architecture Silently Consumes Hundreds of Gigabytes of Local Storage
Apple Advances Late-Stage Operating Systems with Fourth Beta Deployments
Global Crisis Alert: Escalating Middle East Tensions and UK Political Upheaval
Deep Purple Has Released Its Best Album in Decades
Microsoft Lays Off 4,800 Employees and Xbox Suffers the Hardest Blow
Morocco and France Advance as 2026 FIFA World Cup Enters Quarterfinals.
Historic 2026 Tour de France Opens in Barcelona With Revamped Team Time Trial.
Global Mergers and Acquisitions Approach $4 Trillion Defying Geopolitical Tumult.
Negotiators Advance 20-Point Framework for Gaza Ceasefire and Demilitarization.
OECD Warns Middle East Conflict Will Depress Global Economic Growth.
Ukrainian Drones Strike Major Oil Terminal in St. Petersburg.
World Meteorological Organization Issues Urgent Alert Over Rapidly Intensifying El Niño.
United States Commemorates 250th Anniversary With Diplomatic Summits and Global Flotilla.
Iran Begins Days-Long Funeral for Supreme Leader Khamenei Amid Strait of Hormuz Standoff.
Technology giant reports surging carbon emissions driven by artificial intelligence infrastructure demands.
Artificial intelligence adoption accelerates workforce reductions across the technology and financial sectors.
Global technology and financial conglomerates collaborate to launch a new stablecoin standard.
United States regulators lift export restrictions on a major frontier artificial intelligence model.
Luxury bags take over the World Cup: style, status symbol, or just showing off?
×