According to American media outlet Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg attempted to reach a settlement with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) before the trial began. However, his offers were not accepted by the Commission, and as a result, the court hearings started on April 14, 2025.
The article mentions that Zuckerberg made an initial offer of $450 million to FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson at the end of March 2025. The aim was to settle the FTC’s antitrust lawsuit against Meta without going to trial. In this case, the FTC demanded either a restructuring of the company or the sale of Meta’s platforms Instagram and WhatsApp.
However, the $450 million offer was far below what the FTC was expecting. According to WSJ, the Commission demanded that Meta pay a $30 billion fine to resolve the issue. As the trial approached, Zuckerberg increased his offer to $1 billion, but Ferguson stated that the FTC would not accept anything less than $18 billion.
WSJ further reports that Zuckerberg believed U.S. President Donald Trump would support him in this dispute, as Trump appeared open to a potential settlement between the company and the regulator and even showed interest in the details of the proposed deal. However, Trump did not take any concrete action in this matter.
It is important to note that the FTC began its antitrust investigation against Meta in 2019. The first lawsuit was filed in 2020, accusing Meta of acquiring potential competitors to limit market competition. Although the court dismissed the lawsuit that year, the FTC filed a second lawsuit against Meta in 2021. Meta requested that this second lawsuit be dismissed as well, but the court did not grant that request, and the trial began on April 14, 2025.
This ongoing case highlights the intense pressure Meta is facing under U.S. antitrust laws and underscores the increasingly stringent stance of regulatory bodies.
