US sues Google..😀

[r2d2]

The Trump administration on Tuesday sued Google in what is the largest antitrust case against a tech company in more than two decades. 

In its complaint, the Justice Department makes sweeping allegations that Google(GOOG) has stifled competition to maintain its powerful position in the marketplace for online search and search advertising. 

Eleven states -- Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, South Carolina and Texas -- joined the suit, according to the complaint.

The complaint targets a series of interlocking actions by Google that, as a whole, allegedly harmed competition and prevented rivals from gaining a meaningful audience. It alleges in part that Google cornered roughly 80 percent of the search market by entering into "exclusionary agreements" with device manufacturers and browser developers and engaging in other anticompetitive practices.

The complaint comes right before an election in which tech platforms have been scrutinized for their impact on democracy and small business.

Justice Department officials did not rule out a breakup of Google on a call with reporters Tuesday.

"Nothing is off the table," said Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen, who warned that if DOJ did not file suit now, "we could lose the next wave of innovation" and that "Americans may never get to see the next Google."

"Today's lawsuit by the Department of Justice is deeply flawed," Google SVP Global Affairs and Chief Legal Officer Kent Walker wrote in a blog post. "People use Google because they choose to, not because they're forced to, or because they can't find alternatives." 

The post goes on to say that the DOJ complaint "relies on dubious antitrust arguments" that "would do nothing to help consumers."

 

"To the contrary, it would artificially prop up lower-quality search alternatives, raise phone prices, and make it harder for people to get the search services they want to use," Walker wrote.

Google said its practice of paying to be the default search engine on smartphones like Apple's is "no different" from moves by other businesses to promote their products, "just like a cereal brand might pay a supermarket to stock its products at the end of a row or on a shelf at eye level."

[PilliBeta]

This anti-trust no? When Facebook bought instagram and WhatsApp, same or similar things happen. Are they going to prevent merger of Postmates and Uber? Google buys out their competitors because the laws are like that. 

[zarathustra]

Beginning of the end of Google. 

Time to bring it down. 

[dewarist]

Just now, zarathustra said:

Beginning of the end of Google. 

Time to bring it down. 

So is the time for Facebook

[r2d2]

Thaatha ki kopam vachchindanta.. pet dog started ‘Barr’king.. but it is very well known that barking dogs seldom bite..😀

[dewarist]

Instead of aiming at individual companies, it would be good to have regulation around Data collection and Data privacy.

And of course, as it stands now, no govt. body has balls to do it.  Long live capitalism

[dewarist]

Just now, r2d2 said:

Thaatha ki kopam vachchindanta.. pet dog started ‘Barr’king.. but it is very well known that barking dogs seldom bite..😀

Lap dog

[r2d2]

Just now, dewarist said:

Lap dog

Yes.. I forgot Thaatha has no pets...😀

[DummyVariable]

64 pages if anyone wants to read

https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/7273457/10-20-20-US-v-Google-Complaint.pdf