Fifteen US States Join New York Antitrust Probe Of Facebook, Bringing Total To 47

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd October, 2019) Fifteen US states plus Washington, DC have signed on to an antitrust probe of Facebook led by the state of New York, expanding the investigation to nearly the entire United States, New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a press release.

"After continued bipartisan conversations with attorneys general from around the country, today I am announcing that we have vastly expanded the list of states, districts, and territories investigating Facebook for potential antitrust violations," James said in the release on Tuesday.

The investigation now has the support of 47 attorneys general from 45 US states plus Washington, DC and the territory of Guam, the release said.

"Social media is a critical part of doing business in today's economy. Any effort by Facebook to unlawfully stifle competition could cause wide-ranging harm to smaller companies, restrict consumer choice, and increase costs for all," Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said in joining the probe.

James announced the Facebook probe in September, to determine whether the social media platform broke any state or Federal laws with anti-competitive conduct related to its market dominance.