The Justice Department accused Google of illegally protecting its monopoly over search and search advertising in a lawsuit filed on Tuesday, the government’s most significant challenge to a tech company’s market power in a generation and one that could reshape the way consumers interact with the internet.
In a much-anticipated complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia, the agency accused Google of locking up deals with giant partners like Apple and throttling competition through exclusive business contracts and agreements.
While the case seems rushed for political reasons, it at least breathes some form of life into the United States’ dying antitrust laws when it comes to the major technology companies. It’s far too early to tell if anything serious will come of this, as the related court cases and legal maneuvering will take many, many years – and the upcoming US presidential elections could play a role, too.
Google, for its part, beats the usual drum all anticompetitive companies accused of antitrust violations beat: we are the best, people choose to use us, there are enough alternatives, our deals are not illegal, others do it too, and so on. These are only the premeditated opening salvos to a very long war, and I’m sure we’ll have tons of fun covering this fight for years to come.
The materials that have been produced by the investigation are surprisingly detailed and in-depth. Irrespective of what will happen in the US this is going to help the EU probe too.
Mozilla’s official response to the lawsuit:
https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2020/10/20/mozilla-reaction-to-u-s-v-google/
I don’t think it was rushed for political reasons, considering the sheer amount of detail in the investigation material. I can certainly see why it would appear that way, however, and considering which story likely tipped the balance, you can bet the elections will play a role in whether the investigation continues or whether certain things are made to just… disappear.
Personally, I’d rather see the administration go after corporate media (CNN, Fox, MSNBC, all of those vultures) as they are often the reason that social media edits and sensors the way they do. However if the DOJ is clever enough, they should be able to use this case to attack big media indirectly. Going after big media now, however justified, would appear too politicized at this time.
I can’t think of a single reason why the election will influence the investigation – it’s not just a bipartisan issue, it’s a multi-national issue (every other government in every other country is “similarly concerned”).
Why “instead of/rather” and not both? It should be possible to do things like (e.g.) reinstate parts of the (repealed in 2008) FCC fairness doctrine that required “News” to be unbiased; while also investigating the anti-competitive practices of Google.
Brendan,
The appointment of pro-big-business federal judges can make a difference. Also, a corrupt administration has the power to appoint corrupt officials at the FCC, DOJ, FBI, etc to do their bidding. There’s already been meddling at the DOJ with officials overriding their own prosecutors and reversing course on the prosecution of roger stone, a friend of trump’s. When you have corrupt politicians and officials seeking tit for tat political favors, the rule of law goes out the window.
It’s long overdue, but neither party has done anything about it. If you feel corporations have gotten too big and powerful, I’m afraid that neither party currently on the ballet have expressed an interest in enforcing antitrust.