Cat’s Out of The Bag: Facebook Antitrust Lawsuit Critical To Preserving Democracy and Saving Journalism

Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission and 48 state attorneys general filed twin antitrust lawsuits alleging that Facebook has abused its dominance and power in the digital marketplace and engaging in anti-competitive acquisitions and behavior. 

Big tech companies including Google, Apple, Amazon and Facebook have been facing increasing scrutiny from regulators, news publishers and competitors, with a lawsuit against Google and a groundbreaking Congressional report on the big four. While the lawsuit against Google accuses the company of monopolistic behavior, the case filed against Facebook yesterday is the most aggressive antitrust enforcement action to date, with regulators demanding they unwind the acquisitions of “WhatsApp” and “Instagram.” The collective actions between the FTC, Department of Justice and state regulators on Facebook and Google show just how seriously they are taking these companies anticompetitive actions.

The following is a statement from Laura Bassett, former Senior Politics Reporter for HuffPost who was laid off in January 2019, and co-founder of the Save Journalism Project:

This dramatic move by U.S. regulators signals the prospect of continued aggressive antitrust enforcement on Facebook and Google. These companies have operated with impunity as they have exploited the online marketplace and dominated their industries. For years, the news industry has been forced to submit to the whims of Google and Facebook, all while fighting over dramatically reduced ad revenue and to keep its readers informed. This lawsuit is a concrete and critical step in addressing their unlawful actions and a hope that we are closer to a day where news publishers and smaller competitions aren’t at the mercy of these monopolistic behemoths.