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Crypto News Facebook Metaverse

US Regulator Sues Meta to Prevent it from Owning the Entire Metaverse

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has shared a media release indicating its intentions to sue Meta and block its acquisition of Within, a VR fitness app maker.

The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, comes off the back of rising concerns over Meta’s plans for metaverse expansion:

Meta Marches Toward a Monopoly

The purchase of Within may not be so significant on its own; however, the FTC has concerns it could be Meta’s first step towards holding a monopoly over the metaverse:

In its media release, the FTC stated that it sought to block the purchase and alleges that Meta is attempting to stifle VR fitness competition from independent studios. The commission’s final vote was 3-2 in favour of blocking the deal.

With Meta already owning ‘Beat Saber’, which many deem a fitness app, there is concern that the purchase of Within could stifle competitive innovation. However, Nikhil Shanbhag, Meta’s vice president and associate general counsel, has challenged this notion.

https://theorg.com/org/meta/org-chart/nikhil-shanbhag

The idea that this acquisition would lead to anticompetitive outcomes in a dynamic space with as much entry and growth as online and connected fitness is simply not credible.

Nikhil Shanbhag, Meta vice president/associate general counsel

The FTC’s plans to prevent the purchase of Within are not the only new information to come to light this week. Meta’s latest earnings report for Q2 revealed that the tech giant’s Facebook Reality Labs (FRL) division recorded a loss of US$2.81 billion, only a slight improvement on its Q1 loss of US$2.96 billion.

Meta is seemingly not fazed by these figures. Instead, the company is focusing on establishing its metaverse sector for what it hopes will be a successful 2030s decade.

Other Metaverse Developments

Of late, there have been multiple developments regarding the metaverse and its adoption. In April, Meta announced plans to open a physical metaverse-themed store in the San Francisco Bay area. Plans for the store include wall-to-wall curved LED screens to display what users would see when using virtual reality (VR) headsets. Its overall purpose is to provide demos and show the public how VR and metaverse tech work.

This week also saw new initiatives from Sandbox creator Animoca Brands, which has announced an alliance with several prominent Web3 companies to develop a new decentralised autonomous organisation (DAO). The DAO will prioritise users’ asset ownership capabilities and return autonomy to the owners of digital assets.

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Australia Crime Cryptocurrency Law Facebook Scams Social media

Australian Consumer Watchdog Sues Meta Over Crypto Scam Ads

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced it will be suing Meta over the company’s failure to block crypto scam advertisements involving Australian public figures that are in breach of Australian consumer law.

person holding silver iphone 6 https://unsplash.com/photos/iurEAyYyU_c
ACCC takes action against Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram. Source: ABC

False Endorsements of Crypto Investments

Dick Smith, David Koch and Andrew Forrest are some of the prominent Australian personalities unwittingly involved in a series of crypto scam ads circulating on Facebook. The ads claim that the featured celebrities have hugely benefited from cryptocurrency investments, then direct users to scam websites on the strength of these false endorsements.

The consumer watchdog believes that Meta is not doing enough to prevent the circulation of these ads on both Facebook and Instagram. The personalities in the ads have not given any permission for their names and faces to be used in the money-making schemes, and users who have engaged with this material have reportedly been the victims of intense pressure tactics, including phone calls asking for funds.

Rod Sims, the ACCC’s chair, outlined his disappointment with Meta’s lack of action and solutions in a March 18 media release:

https://www.accc.gov.au/media/image-library

Meta should have been doing more to detect and then remove false or misleading ads on Facebook, to prevent consumers from falling victim to ruthless scammers.

ACCC chair Rod Sims

Sims stated that in one circumstance an individual consumer lost A$650,000 to one of these scams. The ACCC will be seeking injunctions, penalties, declarations, costs, and other orders from Meta to ensure the practice does not continue.

Australia Cracks Down on Crypto Scams

News of the ACCC’s legal action against Meta follows an investigation into how Australians lost over A$70 million in 2021 through investment scams alone.

Scamwatch reported in July last year that investment scams involving cryptocurrency and other digital assets were on the rise. Other prominent fraud-related practices have included romance scams, personal identity theft and illegal crypto mining.

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Crypto News

Facebook’s Libra Association Rebrands to ‘Diem’ as it Prepares for 2021 Launch

Facebook’s Libra Association Rebrands to Diem as it Prepares for 2021 Launch

The independent Libra association, which spearheads the development of the Facebook-linked LIbra digital currency, announced Tuesday it is rebranding to “Diem,” as it prepares to launch the US dollar-backed Libra stablecoin next year. The rebranding could be viewed as another move from the organization to gain regulatory clarity for the project which has faced intense scrutiny from global regulators. 

The Diem Project is Gaining Ground

When the social media platform introduced the Libra project, it described plans to launch the digital currency as a multi-currency stablecoin. This initiative was greatly challenged by different regulators of the world, who expressed that Libra might undermine the financial stability of several economies. The regulatory scrutiny of the project led to the departure of many prominent companies who joined the-now Diem Association during the time.

Due to the regulatory issues, the association recently decided to launch the long-planned Libra as a stablecoin backed by a single fiat currency, starting with the US dollar. The stablecoin is expected to launch as early as January, according to the previous report by Crypto News Australia. Separate support for other fiat currency is expected to be announced at a later date. 

A Push for Regulatory Acceptance 

The developments so far are all coming from the association to convince regulators that the Diem project is only aimed at “building a safe, secure and compliant payment system that empowers people and businesses around the world.” With the new name, the association said it’s reinforcing their organizational independence to ensure that the Diem project debuts in full compliance with regulatory expectations.

While commenting on the development today, the CEO at Diem Association, Stuart Levey, said:

“We are committed to doing so in a way that promotes financial inclusion – expanding access to those who need it most, and simultaneously protecting the integrity of the financial system by deterring and detecting illicit conduct. We are excited to introduce Diem – a new name that signals the project’s growing maturity and independence.”