Instagram would have been a success if Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg had never bought a photo-sharing app for $1 billion in 2012, co-founder Kevin Systrom said in Tuesday’s FTC’s Landmark Anti-Trust trial.
Systrom, who was called to the stands at the FTC, testified that Instagram was experiencing explosive user growth prior to the Zuckerberg acquisition offer. The 41-year-old also said he is confident that he will be able to ultimately unfold features like videos and private messaging without the help of Facebook.
As Instagram grew, Systrom testified that Zuckerberg began treating the success of the app as a “threat” on Facebook. In one instance, Instagram has not received new personnel to improve its data privacy practices despite its full effort following the Cambridge analysis scandal.
“I thought that wasn’t appropriate given the size of Instagram,” Systrom said. According to Bloomberg.
Testimony supported the FTC’s claim that Meta used a “buy or buried” strategy to stop apps such as Instagram and WhatsApp before directly threatening the social media empire. The agency asked the court to force Meta to spin off the app.
In a 2017 email, presented to the court, Systrom complained to a colleague whose Instagram had not received additional employees despite its full push for the expansion of its video product.
In another email, Systrom complained to former Chief Technology Officer of Facebook that Instagram has an area of ”invest hunger” for its part.
“I was working very hard at this to make it work and not regaining resources,” Systrom said in the stands. “That was in stark contrast to the efforts I was putting in.”
Systrom continued to lead Instagram after the acquisition, remaining CEO until he resigned in 2018. At the time, he also simply stated that he and co-founder Mike Krieger had departed and “we’re ready for the next chapter.”
This post contacted Meta for comments on Systrom’s testimony.
Earlier in the trial, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg argued that Facebook’s Instagram acquisition helped growth rather than hurt it, claiming that the explosion of popularity never happened without his support.
Meta’s Chief Justice Jennifer Newsted also made the allegation in a blog post earlier this month ahead of the trial.
“When I got Instagram, there were about 2% of today’s users, 13 employees, no revenue, and virtually no infrastructure of their own,” NewStead said. “Many of the features that are now at the heart of the Instagram community (direct messaging, live video streaming, shopping, stories) were built on Meta’s core technology infrastructure after the acquisition.”
As the post reported, Zuckerberg’s past emails about the Instagram and WhatsApp acquisition were heavily featured in the opening discussions of the FTC and the billionaire’s three-day court appearance.
“Messenger hasn’t beat WhatsApp. Instagram was growing much faster than us, so we had to buy it for $1 billion,” Zuckerberg told then Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg in one email in November 2012.
