(Des Monies, IA) -- Iowa is part of a national anti-trust lawsuit against Facebook. A coalition of 48-attorneys general has filed a suit claiming Facebook illegally acquired competitors or potential rivals — including Instagram and WhatsApp — and cut services to smaller perceived threats over the last decade. The suit maintains the practice deprived users from the benefits of competition and reducing privacy protections and services along the way, in order to boost its bottom line through increased advertising revenue.
“Facebook has gained tremendous power over Americans’ lives through its monopolistic behavior,” Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller said. “Without meaningful competition, consumers and small businesses have fewer choices in social networking, resulting in diminished privacy, reduced quality, and less transparency.”
Miller serves on the executive committee leading the investigation of Facebook.
In coordination with the states, the Federal Trade Commission has filed a separate antitrust complaint against Facebook in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
The AGs' lawsuit, also filed in D.C. District Court, says Facebook violated the Sherman and Clayton antitrust acts. It asks the court to halt Facebook’s illegal, anticompetitive conduct and block the company from continuing this behavior in the future. Additionally, the coalition asks the court to restrain Facebook from making further acquisitions valued at or in excess of $10 million without advance notice to the plaintiff states.