Mark Zuckerberg, the head of Meta Platforms (Meta), is facing the biggest crisis since its founding due to ongoing antitrust lawsuits and internal revelations. The possibility of the forced separation of Instagram and WhatsApp, which are Meta's key sources of revenue, as well as increasing criticism regarding user data and ethical concerns, may also undermine 'Zuckerberg leadership.'
◇Antitrust lawsuits escalate…will Instagram and WhatsApp be separated?
On the 14th (local time), The New York Times (NYT) reported that an antitrust lawsuit surrounding the acquisition of Instagram and WhatsApp by Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, has begun.
According to NYT, this lawsuit extends from the antitrust complaint filed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 2020. The FTC claims that Meta's acquisition of Instagram (2012) and WhatsApp (2014) was part of a strategy to eliminate competitors and is demanding the separation of the two platforms. In response, Zuckerberg is arguing in court that the acquisitions were investments aimed at improving user experience.
Mark Hansen, a lawyer for Meta, stated, 'The FTC approved the acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp over a decade ago,' adding, 'Reversing this would set a dangerous precedent in the business world.'
If the court rules that Meta illegally monopolized the social media market in this trial, Meta may have to sell Instagram and WhatsApp. Considering that Facebook has stopped growing, unlike Instagram and WhatsApp, the damage is expected to be severe.
◇Former executive reveals ‘collusion with China’…inevitability of ethical controversy
The crisis facing Zuckerberg is not limited to this. Recently, a former executive of Meta has been making revelations that Zuckerberg has secretly colluded with the Communist Party.
On the 9th, according to ABC News and others, Sarah Winn-Williams, who worked as Meta's global policy director for six years, testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, pouring out revelations about Zuckerberg. According to her, Zuckerberg has engaged in unethical actions, such as developing technologies that allow China to censor users in Taiwan and Hong Kong for Meta's entry into China.
Winn-Williams claimed, 'Zuckerberg pursued a $18 billion (approximately 26 trillion won) business in China over the past 10 years,' and added, 'I witnessed the executive team at Meta regularly undermining U.S. national security and betraying American values.' Previously, she began revealing information about Meta through her memoir 'Careless People.'
As a result, questions have arisen both inside and outside Silicon Valley and Wall Street about the sustainability of Zuckerberg's regime at Meta. Some describe this incident as 'the moral bankruptcy of the tech empire,' and predict that Meta will strengthen external oversight and restructure its leadership.