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    Meta antitrust trial kicks off in federal court

    (www.axios.com)
    431 points c420 | 20 comments | 14 Apr 25 13:18 UTC | HN request time: 1.142s | source | bottom
    1. luminadiffusion ◴[14 Apr 25 19:09 UTC] No.43684955[source]▶
    Zuck waved the white flag, settled the frivolous Trump libel lawsuit, and made several trips to kiss Trump's ring - now he is getting skewered anyhow. Deliciously ironic.

    “Your worst sin is that you have destroyed and betrayed yourself for nothing.”

    ― Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment.

    replies(6): >>43685052 #>>43685106 #>>43685594 #>>43685741 #>>43686075 #>>43686187 #
    2. ◴[14 Apr 25 19:16 UTC] No.43685052[source]▶
    3. hnlmorg ◴[14 Apr 25 19:19 UTC] No.43685106[source]▶
    I wouldn’t write off a leniency due to their aforementioned arse kissing. A trial doesn’t mean a they’ll be found guilty, let alone given any tangible consequences.
    replies(3): >>43685278 #>>43685289 #>>43685474 #
    4. ocdtrekkie ◴[14 Apr 25 19:32 UTC] No.43685278[source]▶
    The DOJ has continued to indicate it intends to require Google spin off Chrome and obviously the tariff game has done no favors to Apple.

    Giving Trump money appears to be a game for suckers.

    replies(2): >>43685434 #>>43685470 #
    5. aylmao ◴[14 Apr 25 19:33 UTC] No.43685289[source]▶
    In fact, wouldn't a trial where they aren't found guilty would probably be better a better outcome for Zuckerberg than no trial at all?
    6. stevenwoo ◴[14 Apr 25 19:44 UTC] No.43685434{3}[source]▶
    Those who were in prison and paid for a pardon got their money's worth. No take backsies on those. The one grifter was released from paying back millions to the people he defrauded - he made money by paying Trump if looked at as simple arithmetic. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/donald-trump-pardons-ni...
    replies(1): >>43686427 #
    7. KerrAvon ◴[14 Apr 25 19:46 UTC] No.43685470{3}[source]▶
    Yeah, for reasons I still don’t understand — probably because it’s driven by Peter Thiel’s Deep Incel Thoughts — JD Vance and co. were big fans of Lina Khan’s FTC antitrust moves during the Biden administration.
    replies(2): >>43685557 #>>43686052 #
    8. paxys ◴[14 Apr 25 19:47 UTC] No.43685474[source]▶
    The judge is an Obama appointee and is the same one who ordered Trump to halt illegal deportations to El Salvador. Trump has publicly called for him to be removed. If the administration wanted a lenient ruling, he is the last judge they would rely on.
    replies(1): >>43687299 #
    9. zombiwoof ◴[14 Apr 25 19:53 UTC] No.43685557{4}[source]▶
    Imagine if instagram took down Facebook as a separate company and leadership

    Same for WhatsApp

    Both companies had amazing founders who could have thrived if Facebook didn’t take them out

    We would have a tech landscape of two independent companies and “meta” being just another Yahoo or MySpace

    Facebook didn’t innovate it crushed innovation.

    Fuck them and I hope Trump scewers Zuck

    replies(1): >>43688265 #
    10. 2OEH8eoCRo0 ◴[14 Apr 25 19:56 UTC] No.43685594[source]▶
    If Meta loses then Trump will use selective enforcement for leverage.
    replies(1): >>43685919 #
    11. input_sh ◴[14 Apr 25 20:08 UTC] No.43685741[source]▶
    This has been brewing since 2020, trials of this scale take time to build: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Trade_Commission_v._Me....

    If anything, he was kissing Trump's ass because he knew it was about to reach trial. The date was known since November.

    replies(1): >>43685916 #
    12. paxys ◴[14 Apr 25 20:24 UTC] No.43685916[source]▶
    That's the point. Big tech kissed Trump's arse in the hopes that he would end the antitrust investigations. Meta literally bribed him to do so. Now Trump is just doubling down on them.
    13. nradov ◴[14 Apr 25 20:24 UTC] No.43685919[source]▶
    This is a civil trial, not criminal. There is no way to find a defendant "guilty".
    14. userbinator ◴[14 Apr 25 20:38 UTC] No.43686052{4}[source]▶
    The growing hatred for Big Tech is largely bipartisan.
    15. bamboozled ◴[14 Apr 25 20:40 UTC] No.43686075[source]▶
    He can just pay his way out of this now, you know that.
    16. goatsi ◴[14 Apr 25 20:51 UTC] No.43686187[source]▶
    He's being blamed for stealing the 2020 election from Trump, so no donations or ring kissing seem to be enough.

    https://www.semafor.com/article/04/14/2025/trump-officials-s...

    replies(1): >>43688679 #
    17. ocdtrekkie ◴[14 Apr 25 21:17 UTC] No.43686427{4}[source]▶
    Too bad Joe Exotic doesn't have enough money I guess...
    18. linkregister ◴[14 Apr 25 23:12 UTC] No.43687299{3}[source]▶
    The judge has less agency than the FTC attorneys, who could easily omit presenting evidence, examining witnesses, etc.
    19. vkou ◴[15 Apr 25 01:55 UTC] No.43688265{5}[source]▶
    > Fuck them and I hope Trump scewers Zuck

    Do you really want to live in a universe where Trump has his hands wrapped around the necks of the media and the press?

    What sort of quid-pro-quo do you think he would get in exchange for not squeezing?

    If you have any delusions that this can turn out well look at what happened with Eric Adams.

    20. forgotoldacc ◴[15 Apr 25 03:17 UTC] No.43688679[source]▶
    Kind of ironic that Facebook+Cambridge Analytica seem completely forgotten despite being a coordinated, successful effort to push for swings towards Trump.

    Roko's Basilisk might be hitting us faster than we thought.