Court Reinstates Antitrust Suit Against Meta

A U.S. appeals court has reinstated an antitrust lawsuit against Meta Platforms brought by the now-defunct photo app Phhhoto, which claims that Meta illegally drove it out of business by copying its features and manipulating Instagram's algorithm. The 2nd Circuit Court found that Phhhoto could proceed with its claims, reversing a lower court's decision that dismissed the case due to a missed statute of limitations. Phhhoto alleges that Meta's actions, including suppressing its visibility on Instagram and cutting off access to its social graph, severely hindered its growth and led to its shutdown in 2017. Meta has strongly denied these accusations, asserting that any changes to Instagram were based on user interest rather than an intent to harm competition. The court's ruling allows Phhhoto to argue that Meta's tactics were anti-competitive, potentially depriving it of significant capital. This case adds to the scrutiny Meta faces from various antitrust lawsuits.