Buzzapp Master 
Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, was back in the spotlight on Monday—this time in a courtroom in Washington, D.C.—to explain why his company bought two of the world’s most popular apps: Instagram and WhatsApp.
The reason? According to U.S. antitrust regulators, Meta didn’t just want to grow—it wanted to kill the competition. And now, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) wants to undo those billion-dollar deals.
The FTC believes Meta’s purchase of Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014 was less about innovation and more about making sure no one else could challenge Facebook’s dominance.
They’re now asking the court to force Meta to sell off these apps, claiming that the company’s grip on social media is hurting competition and limiting user choice.
Zuckerberg, of course, sees things differently.
In court, Zuckerberg admitted Meta didn’t always get it right. For instance, in 2018, the company changed its algorithm to prioritize posts from friends and family. But users weren’t feeling it.
“We misunderstood how people were starting to engage online,” Zuckerberg said. “They were more interested in discovering new content than just seeing what their friends were up to.”
He pointed out that today, only about 20% of the content people see on Facebook—and even less on Instagram—comes from their friends. The rest? It’s mostly videos, memes, reels, and trending topics.
That shift, he argued, shows how much the landscape has changed and why Meta had to evolve too.
TikTok has been the elephant in the room throughout this trial. Its rise has completely changed how people, especially younger users, engage with social media. Meta says this proves one thing clearly: they’re not the only big player anymore.
In fact, Meta’s legal team noted that during TikTok’s short-lived ban in 2023, people flocked back to Instagram and Facebook—a sign that the platforms are still fighting hard for attention.
But the FTC sees things differently. They say internal emails from Zuckerberg show the company was worried about Instagram and WhatsApp becoming threats. Instead of competing, Meta just bought them.
A Tough Case to WinEven the judge has admitted this won’t be an easy case for the FTC. They have to prove that Meta is a monopoly and that breaking it up would actually fix anything.
The FTC argues that Meta controls the space where people mostly connect with friends and family online. Snapchat and MeWe are mentioned as its only true rivals.
But platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Reddit? The FTC says they’re in a different lane—they’re more about entertainment and public content, not private sharing.
If the court rules against Meta, the company might be forced to give up Instagram or WhatsApp—or both. That would be a massive shake-up.
Instagram is one of Meta’s biggest moneymakers when it comes to ads. WhatsApp? It has the highest number of daily users and is key to Meta’s future plans in business messaging and payment systems.
This trial is part of a larger wave of government action to rein in Big Tech—a trend that started during Donald Trump’s presidency and hasn’t slowed down since.
Even though Meta has tried to stay in the good books of past administrations—rolling back some moderation policies and even supporting Trump’s inauguration—none of that has stopped the lawsuits.
The trial continues through July, and everyone in the tech world is watching closely. A win for the FTC could open the door to more breakups in Silicon Valley.
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