A new US government lawsuit alleges that Google has harmed innovation and raised costs for internet users by attempting to monopolise the digital advertising industry
Technology
25 January 2023
Google keeps, on average, 30 cents for every dollar that passes through its ad tools Shutterstock/PixieMe
Google is facing a new antitrust lawsuit from the US Department of Justice that alleges the Silicon Valley company has raised costs for internet users by aiming to monopolise the digital advertising technology industry.
“This case is super important because advertising is the currency of the internet, and will determine the digital economy’s future trajectories,” says Elettra Bietti at New York University.
The Department of Justice lawsuit alleges that Google has engaged in “anticompetitive conduct” …
Source link On October 20, the United States Department of Justice officially filed a lawsuit against Google, alleging the tech giant has been participating in anti-competitive practices related to its search engine. This is the second time the US government has attempted to take legal action against the company.
The complaint states that Google has been taking advantage of its position as the owner of the world’s most popular online search engine to limit competition and unlawfully maintain its market dominance. The government alleges that Google has been engaging in conduct, such as entering into exclusivity agreements with companies like Apple and device manufacturers, to prevent them from using competitors’ search engines for processing of queries.
The lawsuit is the latest in a series of legal battles between Google and US authorities. The Justice Department has long been taking a close look at the company’s dominant market position and the associated implications for competition. In 2019, the Justice Department, along with 11 state attorneys general, filed a lawsuit against the tech giant alleging that it was engaging in anti-competitive practices in the online search market by allegedly disadvantaging and excluding competitors.
The new lawsuit represents yet another pressure point between the government and Google. It puts the tech giant in the difficult position of defending its market position as the world’s leading search engine in a case that has the potential to significantly change how the company operates.
The outcome of the lawsuit is uncertain, but its implications will be closely watched not just in the tech world, but also in markets across the country that are shaped by domain dominance by a select few giants. Companies like Google, who have become the gatekeepers of digital information, must be held to their promise of allowing free and fair competition.
