Perhaps the biggest news this week -- besides the lovely new version of this very website launching -- is that the US government is taking another swing at Meta on anti-trust issues.
QUOTE | "Instead of competing on the merits, Meta is trying to buy its way to the top. Meta already owns a best-selling virtual reality fitness app, and it had the capabilities to compete even more closely with Within's popular Supernatural app. But Meta chose to buy market position instead of earning it on the merits. This is an illegal acquisition, and we will pursue all appropriate relief." - Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Competition deputy director John Newman explains why the US regulator is suing to stop Meta's acquisition of Within.
Now, this is not the first time the FTC has tried to rain on Meta's parade. In 2020 it filed suit in cooperation with a number of states against Meta (then Facebook) over its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp, but that complaint was tossed with a judge ruling that it waited too long to challenge the 2012 and 2014 deals on anti-trust grounds.