Appeals court rejects states’ bid to revive Meta antitrust case

by Rebecca Klar - 04/27/23 11:12 AM ET

FILE – Facebook’s Meta logo sign is seen at the company headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., Oct. 28, 2021. Meta reports earnings on Wednesday, April 26, 2023. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar, File)

A federal court of appeals rejected a coalition of state attorneys general’s push to revive an antitrust case against tech giant Meta, according to a Thursday decision.

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals said the lawsuit, which focuses on Facebook parent company Meta’s acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram, is “not only odd, but old.”

The court argued the states waited too long to bring the lawsuit, which was filed in 2020 and focused on the 2012 and 2014 acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram. Federal regulators at the time approved both acquisitions.

The D.C. circuit court decision also questions the basis of the argument that Meta is violating antitrust laws.

“We note in particular that courts should proceed cautiously when asked to deem novel products or practices anticompetitive. Many innovations may seem anti-competitive at first but turn out to be the opposite, and the market often corrects even those that are anti-competitive,” the decision stated.

The circuit court decision essentially upholds a decision from the U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in June 2021.

Meta, however, is still facing a challenge from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over similar allegations of anticompetitive practices based on the acquisitions.

Boasberg last January said the FTC’s case could proceed after the agency filed a revised version of its initial complaint.

The Hill has reached out to the office of the New York attorney general for comment. New York Attorney General Letitia James led the multi-state lawsuit.

A Meta spokesperson said in a statement the court “rightly recognized” the case “fundamentally mischaracterized the vibrant competitive ecosystem in which we operate” and pledged to continue to fight against the FTC case.

“Moving forward, Meta will defend itself vigorously against the FTC’s distortion of antitrust laws and attacks on an American success story that are contrary to the interests of people and businesses who value our services,” the spokesperson said.

This story was updated at 2:13 pm ET with comments from Meta.