Facebook lawsuits: the biggest tech battle yet, and one that is long overdue

Analysis: The biggest antitrust case in a generation has been compared to the years-long lawsuit against Microsoft in 1998

Facebook is facing perhaps its greatest existential threat yet as the company prepares to battle two antitrust lawsuits brought by the US government and more than 40 states. But while analysts are calling the crackdown an important step, whether the social media giant can be reined in remains to be seen.

The lawsuits brought against Facebook on Wednesday accuse the company of wielding its monopoly power" to crush and overwhelm its rivals. The cases tackle Facebook's acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp in particular, deals which federal regulators now say should be unwound.