Thread by @markscott82

As US states gear up to sue @Facebook over alleged #antitrust charges (as soon as today!) linked to buying up smaller rivals to stop competition, worth reading what @FTC said when it approved deal, back in 2014 bit.ly/3n16vC6

"WhatsApp has made a number of promises about the limited
nature of the data it collects, maintains, and shares with third parties - promises that exceed the protections currently promised to Facebook users…"

“If the acquisition is completed and WhatsApp fails to honor these promises, both companies could be
in violation of Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act and, potentially, the FTC’s order against Facebook."

I know the FTC isn’t involved (yet) in #antitrust charges against FB, but worth remembering: all regulators approved this deal when it first was announced, and a lot comes down to what many think were disingenuous statements from FB at the time

Zuckerberg, at the time: "We are absolutely not going to change plans
around WhatsApp and the way it uses user data"

Worth reading @parmy’s take on how that worked out bit.ly/2xS6eZX

Big question is: did this acquisition, and FB’s deal to buy @Instagram, hobble competition, and how do you prove that?

It’s one thing to say FB owns too many services, it’s another to say these “killer acquisition” represent consumer harm

That’s not to see something doesn’t smell off w/ how @Facebook (and others) can scoop up would-be rivals, often before they become legit competitors (hello, @Snapchat!)

More that, the burden of proof is pretty high (the “unknown unknown” question about what would have happened, say, to WhatsApp if FB hadn’t bought it).

Saying FB kills off competition is harder than actually proving that — especially in US courts