So the Federal Trade Commission started its investigation with a simpler question. Were Facebook and Instagram competing with each other? If they were, it would reduce competition in the marketplace if they were allowed to merge. First, regulators needed a clear picture of what Instagram thought of Facebook and vice versa, based on internal emails and text messages. Oddly, the FTC would not be gathering this documentation itself. The lawyers for Facebook and Instagram—the same ones who had worked on the deal—were now tasked with finding any evidence showing that the deal shouldn’t go through.
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