A US federal judge has ruled that Meta does not hold a social media monopoly.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed an antitrust lawsuit against the Facebook owner in 2020 over its acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram.

It accused Meta of operating a ‘buy or bury’ scheme against its nascent competitors. The tech giant bought Instagram for $1bn in 2012, and WhatsApp for $19bn in 2014.

The ruling means Meta does not have to restructure or sell Instagram and WhatsApp.

A Meta spokesperson said: “Our products are beneficial for people and businesses and exemplify American innovation and economic growth.

“We look forward to continuing to partner with the administration and to invest in America.”

Joe Simonson, a spokesperson from FTC, added it was “deeply disappointed in this decision” and will be “reviewing all our options”.

At trial, the FTC drew attention to a series of Facebook’s (as the company was called back then) statements about the deals, including a 2008 email from CEO Mark Zuckerberg, which said “it is better to buy than compete”.

However, Meta argued the social media landscape has shifted from the days when Facebook was used to share photos and personal updates. It claimed the FTC had ignored competitive pressure from Google’s YouTube, ByteDane’s TikTok and Apple’s messaging app.

It also stated it believed its main competitors in the market were Snapchat and MeWe (a small, privacy-focused social media app) as well as X (formerly Twitter), and Reddit.

It also defended the acquisitions saying it was a valid business strategy rather than building competitor products.

US District Judge James Boasberg in Washington agreed mostly with Meta’s arguments, adding that the FTC had incorrectly excluded YouTube and TikTok when it challenged its dominance.

He said: “The landscape that existed only five years ago when the Federal Trade Commission brought this antitrust suit has changed markedly.

“[…] Even if YouTube is out, including TikTok alone defeats the FTC’s case.”

This ruling is the first win for big tech against the antitrust crackdown, which started during Donald Trump’s first term as president. The FTC is currently pursuing another case against Amazon, while the Department of Justice has filed lawsuits against Alphabet’s Google and Apple.