Facebook asks U.S. court for old FTC merger documents in antitrust dispute


 In this photo illustration, the Facebook logo is viewed on a smartphone. REUTERS/Dadoruvic.


WASHINGTON, July 6 (Reuters) - Metas Facebook has asked a U.S. court for eight documents prepared by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission as part of its review of the company’s purchases of Instagram and WhatsApp, which the agency continues to make. .


The request was filed late Tuesday and was filed by the FTC, asking the court to quash the two deals. Facebook bought Instagram for $1 billion in 2012 and WhatsApp for $19 billion in 2014.


The FTC sued Metas Facebook in 2020 during the Trump administration, accusing the company of unlawful conduct to maintain its social network monopoly.


Facebook is battling the lawsuit and wants the material to be part of that fight.


\"It is almost certain that both Instagram and WhatsApp filings indicate that the FTC has determined that each acquisition is unlikely to reduce competition or harm consumers,\" Facebook said in its filing.


The company argued that the FTC turned over the documents to the House Judiciary Committee as it probes tech giants including Amazon (AMZN.O), Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.O) and Apple (AAPL.O). Current FTC Chair Lina Khan is a staff member of the committee.


\"All claims of privilege were waived when the FTC decided to voluntarily share these documents with members and staff of the House Judiciary Committee,\" Facebook said in its filing.


The FTC did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the filing.


The requested documents include memos written for commissioners by the FTC’s Bureau of Competition and Economics on whether to allow the Instagram deal to pass. Meta also asked Competition Bureau staff to provide clarification about the WhatsApp transaction.


💌 Resources and references: reuters.com 🔊 Facebook asks US court for old FTC merger documents in antitrust dispute.


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