Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom testified before a federal judge, bolstering the Federal Trade Commission’s claim that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg underinvested in the photo-sharing app after acquiring it.
Systrom stated that Zuckerberg seemed to prioritize Facebook over Instagram following the 2012 acquisition, focusing fewer resources on strengthening user privacy and video products. He also expressed his efforts to hire more employees were often rejected by Meta’s top brass despite Instagram’s rapid growth.
The FTC argues that Meta’s acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp are anticompetitive strategies to stifle rival social media platforms. Systrom testified that internal studies found declines in Facebook user growth were not caused by Instagram, but rather a transition to video content.
Zuckerberg had expressed concerns about Instagram’s growth cannibalizing Facebook’s, leading him to consider spinning out the app as a separate company. Meta underinvested in developing Instagram’s comments and responses to Snapchat’s Stories, Systrom claimed.
The FTC claims that Meta has an illegal monopoly on personal social networking, while Meta counters that it competes with TikTok, YouTube, and X within a broader internet ecosystem.
Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/04/22/meta-antitrust-instagram-zuckerberg