your current location is：Home > TechnologyHomeTechnology

　　a few days ago, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) lawyer said that the agency will continue to advance the lawsuit against Meta CEO Mark Zucker in the FTC Internal Court. One of Berger's personal allegations related to Meta's acquisition of a virtual reality software maker.

　　Previously, the FTC sued Meta and Zuckerberg to the FTC internal court, requiring Meta to obtain approval from the FTC for any future M&A transactions. The internal court proceedings are scheduled to be formally heard on January 19 next year.

　　In July this year, the FTC formally sued Meta and Zuckerberg on the grounds that the defendants planned to acquire the virtual reality software maker "With Unlimited" without the FTC's permission. The acquired company is the developer of the popular virtual reality fitness software "Supernatural".

　　The FTC lawsuit is taking a two-pronged approach. The agency also filed a complaint with the FTC's internal court and a federal district court in California. In December, a federal district court in California will hold a six-day court hearing to decide whether to support Meta's move forward with the deal. At the same time, the FTC is also moving forward with an internal court case.

　　In an internal court hearing on Friday, FTC attorney Abby Dennis said the FTC had made a decision not to target Zuckerberg himself in the federal district court proceedings, but in the internal court proceedings, The individual charges against Zuckerberg will still be advanced as the FTC seeks a broader legal redress package.

　　The lawsuit in the internal court may prevent Meta from acquiring Winthin. In addition, when Meta conducts any form of merger or acquisition in the future, it first needs to notify the FTC and obtain the agency's prior approval.

　　Under existing U.S. takeover transaction regulation law, Meta is only required to notify the Federal Trade Commission and another antitrust “sister agency”, the U.S. Department of Justice, if the purchase amount reaches or exceeds $101 million.

　　In response to the FTC's claims, a Meta spokesperson said that the FTC made baseless allegations based solely on subjective ideas and was divorced from commercial reality. Meta will continue to defend its legitimate rights and interests, and the company believes that various evidence will prove that Meta's acquisition of Within is beneficial to the public, developers, and the entire virtual reality market.

　　Previously, a large number of mergers and acquisitions by Meta's predecessor, Facebook, attracted the attention of the US government. In 2020, an investigation by the U.S. House of Representatives found that Facebook Inc. acquired about 100 companies in the decade of the 2010s, of which only one M&A deal was submitted to the FTC for in-depth review.

　　As an antitrust regulator, the FTC also investigated the mergers and acquisitions of tech giants, and found that Meta and the other four major tech companies had conducted more than 800 acquisitions and investment transactions that did not require regulatory review.

　　Meta's lawyer Mark Hansen said that in future lawsuits in the FTC internal court, Meta hopes to drop the charges against Zuckerberg personally. In addition, Meta refuses to reach a settlement agreement with the FTC on this lawsuit.

　　"We believe that this acquisition of Winthin should be approved and should go ahead," Hansen said.