Suitable in Blue’s differences, Mark Zuckerberg took the two position to defend the past of his company – and the struggle for his future.

Meta CEO, Zuckerberg led the company that started on Facebook for more than 20 years. Over the past decade, he had to defend his work in Washington, DC several times before, from Cambridge Analytica sessions for 2018 to the 2021 hearings of Congress that focus on getting rid of information.

But it can be said that these are the highest risks that Zuckerberg faced so far, because what is in the trial is essential: forming his business in the sprawling market of $ 1.35 trillion.

FTC filed a lawsuit against Meta, on the pretext that the social media giant acquisitions Instagram WhatsApp more than a decade have been anti -competitive tactics to eliminate competitors. If you are lost in the case, it may be forced to strip the two applications. The case, which has its roots in the first Trump administration and was implemented by the FTC President Lina Khan, has traveled on a long and loose schedule (he was initially rejected and then returned) to trial at the end – with Zuckerberg as the first witness.

While FTC’s lawyer, Daniel Matthesson, has argued that “consumers do not have reasonable alternatives” on Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, Zuckerberg made the condition that the Meta market is much larger (and more competitive) than the government proposes. On the platform, Zuckerberg rejected the idea that Facebook focused on friends, and said that the company has become “more than a wide -entertainment discovery space.”

This condition, of course, is much larger than the definition. At a level, it is present with the existence of the technology scene as a whole – at least, when it comes to how the industry is currently working. Whether FTC’s claims about Meta anti -competition motives or not, the basic commercial practice – the technology giant that swallows an innovative startup – is the way the ecosystem of technology for work has been organized, and the reward of various participants, over the past few decades.

For startups, especially those with limited expectations for public subscription, dreams of great technology exit were faint over the past few years – and under the Trump administration, investors and businessmen were eagerly waiting for the integration and purchase to return to life.

There is some evidence that occurred – take, for example, the Google explosion Get WIZ for $ 32 billionIt was announced in March and the largest deal in the history of the research giant. Others in the Meta camp there is no doubt that Trump will intervene and press FTC to settle the case with Zuckerberg (Meta Have Certainly the pressure was on the president).

But the truth is: If Meta loses this experience, it is very likely that the large technical deals that started to melt, affecting the entire ecosystem. For startups, hopes for the Grimmer technology giant will appear, and VCS infection liquidity It will continue to see delaying exits while LPS grows increasingly for patience for returns.

Again, none of this is to excuse or leave the concentration of the monopolistic market that may have been created over time. But given the incentives currently integrated into technology, it is natural for the giants to search for innovation by obtaining startups.

Zuckerberg is expected to take the situation again on Tuesday, and when he does, he will not clarify the issue of his company. The Big Tech M&A case will be shown to return to the long way it works – for the better, or for the worst.

Freezing …Trump administration He said yesterday About 2.2 billion dollars in Harvard’s federal funds were frozen, amid confrontation on the demands sent by the government last week. Harvard is The latest prestigious university It caught fire with the Trump administration. These confrontations can create pressure on endowments, and traditional traditional partners of VC companies.

Emimi …I recently introduced the founder of conviction Sarah Quh. We talked about what it had to grow in the startup office, and why did not hold the previous assumptions in the era of artificial intelligence. Read the story here.

We see you tomorrow

Allie Garfinkle
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Email: Alexandra.garfinkle@fortune.com
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This story was originally shown on Fortune.com

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2025-04-15 11:48:00