Meta Gets Court Win In Metaverse Acquisition Plans: Report

Should the Federal Trade Commission not appeal the ruling, Meta would probably have the option to acquire Additional Companies offering Metaverse-Related Products or Services.

A Federal appointed authority in the United States has reportedly given approval for tech giant Meta to push ahead on acquiring a virtual reality company

According to a Feb. 1,District Court for the Northern District of California denied a directive by the Federal Trade Commission, or FTC, as part of an effort to obstruct Meta from purchasing VR firm Inside. However, he also reportedly issued a temporary restraining order preventing Meta from finalizing the negotiation for at least seven days.

The ruling was part of a lawsuit filed by the FTC against Meta and CEO Mark Zuckerberg in July trying to hinder the tech firm from “its ultimate goal of owning the entire ‘metaverse.'” Meta had planned to purchase Inside and its fitness app Supernatural, allegedly to acquire a potential threat to its Metaverse plans.

Before Rebranding to Meta, Facebook confronted a similar “anticompetitive conduct” FTC complaint in 2020 for its acquisition of WhatsApp in 2014 and Instagram in 2012 for allegedly stifling innovation by buying the competition. The messaging and photo sharing applications had been potential challengers to Facebook’s Messenger app and social media site.

If fruitful in its legal efforts, Meta would almost certainly have the option to acquire little companies offering metaverse-related products or services and have them operate under its umbrella rather than as competitors. The FTC reportedly has seven days to record an appeal to Pass judgment on Davila’s decision.
Zuckerberg said in a November interview that Meta was “getting past” any questions regarding its metaverse desires. The company announced $3.67 billion in losses for the second from last quarter of 2022, with expectations that these numbers would increase in 2023. Meta’s earnings report for the final quarter of 2022 will be released on Feb. 1.