Big Tech, Lawsuits and Economic Experiments

What happens when you pay 6,000 people to stop using Facebook and Instagram?

That is exactly what world-leading economist John A. List did. He wanted to see where their time went instead ? and the experiment ended up as a key piece of evidence in the US antitrust case against Meta.

For Meta, the stakes were high: the company risked being forced to sell Instagram and WhatsApp. For List, the trial offered a rare opportunity to test economic theory against reality, with one of the world?s most powerful technology companies on trial.

What can economics tell the law about monopoly and competition? And how should we regulate companies that have accumulated so much power over our economy, our information and our lives?