The United States Department of Justice has asserted that Google violated regulations to maintain its dominance in online search by investing $10 billion to prevent smaller competitors from gaining traction.
“This case is about the future of the Internet,” said Kenneth Dantzer, arguing for the Justice Department that Google began to illegally maintain its monopoly in 2010.
According to the Justice Department claims, Google pays billions annually to device manufacturers like Apple, wireless firms like AT&T and browser developers like Mozilla. These payments were intended to gain nearly 90% market share for Google’s search engine.
Additionally, Dantzer claimed that Google manipulated internet ad auctions to increase advertising costs for advertisers. “The defaults are powerful, there are issues of scale and Google illegally maintained a monopoly for more than a decade,” Dantzer said. He argued that this resulted in Google’s lack of innovation and less attention to other concerns such as privacy.
Dantzer also said the Justice Department had uncovered evidence suggesting Google took steps to protect communications regarding payments it made to companies like Apple. He noted that Google knew these agreements violated antitrust laws.
During the trial, Dantzer presented a chat in which Google CEO Sundar Pichai requested to disable a specific chat history.
Google’s defense is straightforward. It maintains that its considerable market share is not the result of illegal actions but of being a fast and efficient search engine, which it provides for free.
Google’s lawyers say users can simply remove the Google app from their devices or use an alternative search engine such as Microsoft’s Bing, Yahoo, or DuckDuckGo by typing it into a browser.
They say users continue to choose Google because they rely on it for answers and are satisfied with its performance.
The trial, with opening arguments in federal court in Washington, DC, is expected to last 10 weeks, with two phases. Initially, Judge Amit Mehta will determine whether Google violated antitrust laws in its management of search and search ads.
If Google has violated the law, Judge Mehta will determine the appropriate course of action to deal with it. This may include ordering Google to stop illegal practices or disconnect assets.
While the government’s complaint seeks “necessary structural relief,” it does not specify the exact remedy.
The outcome of the legal battle has significant implications for the tech industry, which has defended itself against antitrust charges of acquiring or suppressing smaller competitors because of the free or low-cost nature of the services it offers. What have you faced?
Past antitrust trials include Microsoft in 1998 and AT&T in 1974. The AT&T case ultimately led to the development of the modern cell phone industry, and the Microsoft case paved the way for companies like Google on the Internet.
