A US federal judge has dismissed a major antitrust lawsuit filed by Elon Musk's social media company, X Corp., over allegations that top advertisers boycotted the platform.
The decision marks a significant legal setback for Musk, who has claimed that brands deliberately withheld billions in advertising revenue from X, formerly known as Twitter.
The case, which began in 2024, named the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) and major companies, including Mars, CVS Health, and Colgate-Palmolive, as defendants.
According to CNBC, X alleged that the advertisers acted together to harm the company financially, even though such a move went against their own business interests.
However, US District Judge Jane Boyle of the Dallas federal court found that X failed to demonstrate it suffered harm under federal antitrust law.
In her ruling, Boyle wrote, "The very nature of the alleged conspiracy does not state an antitrust claim, and the court therefore has no qualm dismissing with prejudice."
Judge dismisses lawsuit by Musk's X Corp accusing advertisers of illegal boycott https://t.co/OaJDY0hgCG
— Reuters Legal (@ReutersLegal) March 26, 2026
X Claims Billions Lost in Alleged Ad Boycott
The advertisers had argued that X could not prove a coordinated boycott. In court filings, CVS and the other companies maintained that they made independent decisions about where to spend advertising dollars.
They said concerns over X's brand safety after Musk's 2022 takeover—during which several employees were fired—led them to choose other platforms, NY Post reported.
These companies stressed that their actions were standard business decisions, not part of a conspiracy.
The lawsuit claimed that the advertisers, through the WFA initiative called the Global Alliance for Responsible Media, collectively withheld "billions of dollars in advertising revenue" from X.
Musk and X argued this harmed their ability to compete, but the judge concluded the complaint did not meet the legal requirements for an antitrust claim.
X and the World Federation of Advertisers have not publicly commented on the ruling. Musk, known for his bold statements on social media, has not yet reacted publicly to this setback.
Originally published on vcpost.com
