The U.S. antitrust trial against Meta has engaged in over 10 hours of testimony from CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who was shown a video of his 28-year-old self discussing early concerns about competition. The trial is focused on Zuckerberg's acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp, raising questions about whether these deals suppressed competition in the social media landscape. With former Meta executives testifying, the trial highlights a pivotal moment in the history of social media and competition, invoking nostalgia for the early era of tech startups and the emerging dominance of mobile platforms.
Zuckerberg was asked by government lawyers to watch a seven-minute video of an interview he gave at a tech conference more than a decade ago.
It was a reminder of a very different era an age of social apps, Silicon Valley hubris and Ivy League-educated entrepreneurs.
At issue in the landmark case is what could have happened if Mr. Zuckerberg had never made two key deals, buying Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014.
Sitting in Judge James E. Boasberg's courtroom for the first two weeks of testimony has been like entering a time warp.
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