The antitrust investigations into Facebook Inc. are entering their final stages, targeting the social media giant’s acquisition of WhatsApp and Instagram, according to a report today from The Washington Post.

Reports that Facebook was being investigated by the U.S. federal government and states go back to 2019, with more recent reports saying an antitrust lawsuit is likely before the end of the year. A report Nov. 8 suggested that an antitrust lawsuit from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission could come this month.

That a lawsuit is coming is a given but as the month winds down, the timing is still open to speculation. The Post said the filing could involve both the states and the FTC alleging that the acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram “helped create an anti-competitive social networking juggernaut that has left users with few quality alternatives.”

The investigation is said to have explored how the two apps have changed in the years since they were purchased. The consideration here is to whether the transactions left users with worse services and fewer privacy protections than they might have had the companies remained independent.

One particular consideration is Facebook’s commitment to both regulators and users of WhatsApp at its time of acquisition that it would preserve the company’s independence and strong privacy protections.

Whether services on WhatsApp and Instagram have improved under Facebook ownership is subjective. In terms of user functionality, it would be hard to argue that both haven’t improved but the bigger issue is privacy. Investigators are said to have looked into the way in which Facebook manages its vast trove of user data and the policies it has in place that govern when and how third-party app developers and other companies can access it.

Facebook is infamous for its privacy lapses, the Cambridge Analytica scandal being the best-known case, but that related to Facebook itself. Instagram was caught up in a minor scandal in August 2019 when it terminated a relationship with an advertising partner after it was discovered to be collecting data from user accounts. WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum also quit WhatsApp in April 2018 citing privacy concerns.

Whatever form the action against Facebook may take — the Post noted that while the FTC has been talking to the states, there could be two separate lawsuits — Facebook is preparing for a fight. A leaked 14-page internal Facebook paper published in October detailed various arguments against any attempts to break the company up.

Photo: Facebook