FTC overruled staff in suing Meta over $400M Within acquisition - Bloomberg
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The Federal Trade Commission's decision to sue Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) over its planned $400M acquisition of virtual-reality app maker Within Unlimited - creators of fitness app Supernatural - came on a close 3-2 vote among commissioners.
And Chair Lina Khan led the Democratic majority to make the decision despite a staff recommendation against bringing a case, Bloomberg reports.
That's an indicator of what many observers expected when Khan was named to chair the agency: a more aggressive approach toward reining in big tech, at an agency that has seldom countered the opinions of its staff lawyers and economists.
Part of the FTC's complaint touches on Supernatural competing with Meta's own Beat Saber app, a rhythm game where users hit targets in time to music.
Meta/Facebook has acquired more than 100 smaller companies over the past decade, but this is the first time that the FTC has preemptively challenged one of its purchases, the report notes. The agency is looking to unwind Meta's acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp in a case that could go to trial in 2024.
Meta stock (META) is down 1.6% in a further post-earnings decline; it fell 5.2% yesterday in the first regular trading session after its second-quarter miss featuring a weak outlook.
On Wednesday, Meta responded to the suit by saying the case is "based on ideology and speculation, not evidence ... the FTC is sending a chilling message to anyone who wishes to innovate in VR."