Starlink Watch
Musk tracker / Market power and competitors

· Court filing

X sues advertisers and World Federation of Advertisers alleging illegal boycott; court dismisses case in 2026

We tried being nice for 2 years and got nothing but empty words. Now it is war.
Elon Musk · 6 Aug 2024

What he said or did

X sued the World Federation of Advertisers and companies including Unilever, Mars, CVS Health and Orsted in Texas federal court, alleging that through the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) they organised an illegal advertising boycott. Musk posted: We tried being nice for 2 years and got nothing but empty words. Now it is war.

Background

Advertisers had cut spending on X after Musk's takeover. Then-CEO Linda Yaccarino said: People are hurt when the marketplace of ideas is constricted. No small group of people should monopolize what gets monetized.

Official response

Within days the WFA discontinued GARM, saying the allegations misconstrue its purpose and activities and had significantly drained its resources and finances.

Fact-checks and findings

Judge Boyle wrote: The very nature of the alleged conspiracy does not state an antitrust claim.

What happened next

On 26 March 2026 Judge Jane Boyle dismissed the antitrust claims with prejudice. X and the WFA announced a settlement in July 2026, with the WFA saying it would not revive GARM or create a similar programme. X appealed to the Fifth Circuit against ten advertisers including Shell, Mars, Nestle and Lego; in August 2026 the Justice Department filed a brief urging reversal, while saying it took no position on whether the advertisers broke antitrust law.

Sources

This entry records what was publicly said or done, as reported by the sources above. Quotes are attributed to the person who made them.

Share this entry

More on United States

United States: the full record