US States To Sue Facebook for Antitrust Violations on Wednesday, Sources Say

A group of U.S. states led by New York will file a lawsuit on Wednesday afternoon accusing 📘Facebook Inc of violating antitrust law, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office has said she will make a major “business related” announcement on Wednesday afternoon. North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein’s office announced a press call about “a technology company.”

The lawsuit will be filed in federal court in Washington, one source said.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has been probing 📘Facebook, as have state attorneys general. More than 40 are expected to join the lawsuit.

If the lawsuits are filed, 📘Facebook would be the second major tech company sued this year. The Justice Department sued Alphabet Inc’s Google in October.

A spokesman for 📘Facebook declined comment on Wednesday.

In congressional testimony this summer, 📘Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg defended much-criticized acquisitions like Instagram and WhatsApp, saying that his social media platform helped them expand from small, insignificant companies into powerhouses. He has also argued that 📘Facebook has a range of competitors, including other tech giants.

📘Facebook settled a privacy probe with the FTC in 2019, paying $5 billion to resolve allegations that it violated a 2012 consent decree by inappropriately sharing user information with the now-defunct Cambridge Analytica, whose clients included President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign.

(Reporting by Diane Bartz, David Shepardson and Karen Freifeld; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Lisa Shumaker)