Zuckerberg may have to sell off Instagram and WhatsApp

Meta, a leading tech company, is on trial in an antitrust trial that may compel it to split up Instagram and WhatsApp. It acquired these two startups a decade earlier, and now these have turned into pillars of the company's largest business.

Its origin was in an era that began with the presidency of Donald Trump. During that time, in 2020, Meta (formerly Facebook) was alleged by the Federal Trade Commission to have acquired Instagram and WhatsApp with an intent to stifle competition and illegitimately monopolize social media.

According to the FTC, following Mark Zuckerberg's strategy of "buying is better than competing", Facebook bought companies that could pose a threat to it. Under this plan, first Instagram and then WhatsApp were bought.

Facebook bought Instagram in 2012 for about $1 billion. At that time it was a small photo-sharing app. Two years later, in 2014, Facebook bought WhatsApp for $22 billion. Both these platforms helped Facebook become popular again among mobile users, especially among the younger generation.

The FTC says that Facebook deliberately bought new companies that could become its competitors in the future, although Meta says that this lawsuit is "beyond reality" and today Instagram, WhatsApp, Facebook all compete equally with services like TikTok, YouTube, iMessage and X.

If the court rules against Meta, the company may have to separate Instagram and WhatsApp. This will have a direct impact on Meta's earnings, because according to the report, by 2025, Instagram alone is going to be the source of 50.5% of Meta's ad revenue in the US.

Experts say that today there are many other big players in the social media market like TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube, due to which it will be challenging for the FTC to prove Meta's monopoly. This lawsuit can prove to be a milestone not only for Meta, but for the entire tech industry. Companies like Google and Amazon are also facing similar antitrust cases.