A federal court dismissed two antitrust cases that were brought against Facebook, representing a significant setback for federal and state regulators in their attempts to reign in Big Tech. The lawsuits were filed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and state attorneys general seeking to break up what they described as Facebook’s monopoly on social networking. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in Washington, D.C., an Obama appointee, said FTC lawyers didn’t provide enough evidence or explanation in how they determined that Facebook controls more than 60 percent of the social media networking market. The agency further alleged Facebook violated antitrust laws by purchasing a would-be competitor. “The FTC has failed to plead enough facts to plausibly establish a necessary element of all of its Section 2 claims—namely, that Facebook has monopoly power in the market for Personal Social Networking (PSN) Services,” Boasberg wrote (pdf). “The complaint contains nothing on that score …
Originally found on the Epoch Times Read More
