4 ms·

Facebook to face fresh anti-trust investigation

54 points by seagullz 7y ago

zer0faith 7y ago
Facebook has previously claimed it is not a monopoly and said consumers can choose how to connect with friends online. Valid point.
- saagarjha 7y ago
  If all your friends are on Facebook, then it's not really a choice.
  - o10449366 7y ago
    1) The dynamics of your social network aren't FB's problem (legally) 2) Your friends being on FB doesn't preclude them from being on other social networks
  - tdb7893 7y ago
    Yeah but your friends chose that. My friends switched to Discord and don't really use Facebook anymore. Switching was super easy and happened organically for us.
  - mav3rick 7y ago
    What a stupid argument. They chose a better product in their head. That's not Facebook's fault.
- snek 7y ago
  Well they just purchase anyone who makes a ripple in social media, so the choice might be a bit artificial there.
- throwaway_law 7y ago
  >Facebook has previously claimed it is not a monopoly and said consumers can choose how to connect with friends online. That's like saying x was charged with a crime, and x defended by claiming they didn't kill anyone. Murder is a type of crime, being charged with a crime doesn't mean you are being charged with murder. A Monopoly is just 1 type of Anti-Trust law, there are plenty of other prohibited behaviors and acts under Anti-Trust laws. So FB claim is not only not valid, but even if it were that doesn't make it a legal truth, as in saying there isn't a body so I couldn't have committed the murder (yes, you could have).
newsreview1 7y ago
If this is at all similar to the antitrust investigation I don't think they'll have to look far to show that FB used consumer data inappropriately and manipulated advertising prices.
- aylmao 7y ago
  > FB used consumer data inappropriately I remember a few articles, say the 2-factor phone numbers used for advertising. > and manipulated advertising prices. I don't remember this though. Do you have a link somewhere?
  - newsreview1 7y ago
    I'm biased, but found these to be interesting reads. We'll see as the cases play out though. https://fitsmallbusiness.com/how-much-does-facebook-advertising-cost/ https://fitsmallbusiness.com/how-much-does-facebook-advertis... https://www.vox.com/2018/3/7/17087468/facebook-ad-prices-increase-algorithm-news-feed https://www.vox.com/2018/3/7/17087468/facebook-ad-prices-inc...
mjfl 7y ago
twitter, snapchat, youtube all huge platforms Facebook isn't even close to a monopoly.

54 points by seagullz 7y ago

Facebook has previously claimed it is not a monopoly and said consumers can choose how to connect with friends online. Valid point.

saagarjha 7y ago
If all your friends are on Facebook, then it's not really a choice.
- o10449366 7y ago
  1) The dynamics of your social network aren't FB's problem (legally) 2) Your friends being on FB doesn't preclude them from being on other social networks
- tdb7893 7y ago
  Yeah but your friends chose that. My friends switched to Discord and don't really use Facebook anymore. Switching was super easy and happened organically for us.
- mav3rick 7y ago
  What a stupid argument. They chose a better product in their head. That's not Facebook's fault.
snek 7y ago
Well they just purchase anyone who makes a ripple in social media, so the choice might be a bit artificial there.
throwaway_law 7y ago
>Facebook has previously claimed it is not a monopoly and said consumers can choose how to connect with friends online. That's like saying x was charged with a crime, and x defended by claiming they didn't kill anyone. Murder is a type of crime, being charged with a crime doesn't mean you are being charged with murder. A Monopoly is just 1 type of Anti-Trust law, there are plenty of other prohibited behaviors and acts under Anti-Trust laws. So FB claim is not only not valid, but even if it were that doesn't make it a legal truth, as in saying there isn't a body so I couldn't have committed the murder (yes, you could have).

newsreview1 7y ago

If this is at all similar to the antitrust investigation I don't think they'll have to look far to show that FB used consumer data inappropriately and manipulated advertising prices.

aylmao 7y ago
> FB used consumer data inappropriately I remember a few articles, say the 2-factor phone numbers used for advertising. > and manipulated advertising prices. I don't remember this though. Do you have a link somewhere?
- newsreview1 7y ago
  I'm biased, but found these to be interesting reads. We'll see as the cases play out though. https://fitsmallbusiness.com/how-much-does-facebook-advertising-cost/ https://fitsmallbusiness.com/how-much-does-facebook-advertis... https://www.vox.com/2018/3/7/17087468/facebook-ad-prices-increase-algorithm-news-feed https://www.vox.com/2018/3/7/17087468/facebook-ad-prices-inc...

mjfl 7y ago

twitter, snapchat, youtube all huge platforms Facebook isn't even close to a monopoly.