A federal court dismissed the Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust lawsuit against Facebook, handing the social media giant a victory as it battles claims of unfair monopolistic behavior.
The decision Monday marks a setback for the trade commission and could lead to more aggressive calls for U.S. antitrust law to be updated by Congress, just as related bipartisan bills have been introduced by the House Judiciary Committee.
A Washington, D.C., federal court said the agency was too vague in its complaint and didn’t do enough to support its assertion Facebook abused its power in the social media market.
“The FTC’s Complaint says almost nothing concrete on the key question of how much power Facebook actually had, and still has, in a properly defined antitrust product market,” U.S. District Judge James Boasberg wrote in the complaint’s dismissal on Monday.
“It is almost as if the agency expects the Court to simply nod to the conventional wisdom that Facebook is a monopolist” he added.
Last year, critics said former President Donald Trump, who was keen to crack down on social media companies, may have pressured the trade commission to rush its complaint against Facebook to give him a boost before the 2020 election.
Boasberg said Monday the court would give the trade commission another chance to take on Facebook if it files an amended complaint that clarifies the argument.
Newly appointed trade commission chairwoman Lina Khan, a well-known anti-monopolist, is likely to file a complaint.
The court’s decision is also likely to affect the political debate around antitrust law significantly. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle often argue existing laws are insufficient to hold Facebook and other tech giants accountable. Monday’s dismissal provides fuel for that argument.
“Today’s development in the FTC’s case against Facebook shows that antitrust reform is urgently needed,” said Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado, the top Republican on the House antitrust subcommittee. “Congress needs to provide additional tools and resources to our antitrust enforcers to go after Big Tech companies engaging in anticompetitive conduct.”
Buck is one of the leaders in Congress pushing for six sweeping bipartisan antitrust bills aimed at reining in tech giants such as Apple, Amazon, Google, and Facebook. The bills passed the House Judiciary Committee last week by narrow bipartisan margins after more than 24 hours of debate and over a year of committee investigations.
The legislative package, which represents the largest expansion of the federal government’s antitrust powers in generations, has received rare bipartisan support in the Judiciary Committee — as well as opposition to the bills from members of both parties.
