The Justice Department filed a no-confidence motion against Google on Tuesday, alleging that the tech giant was using its dominance in the search business to become the Internet's "monopoly gatekeeper."
The
Justice Department alleges that Google, a division of the alphabet, paid
billions of dollars to Apple and other mobile phone manufacturers, as well as
web browser companies, to keep Google as their default search engine for.
According
to the no-confidence suit, these payments and similar arrangements have allowed
Google to maintain a lock in the web search market, which has long been the
foundation of its business.
In
one of the alleged arrangements described in the suite, Google requires device
makers to not only preload their search app, but also add five other apps,
including Chrome, Google Play, Google Maps, and YouTube. In addition, according
to the government's case, the developed apps "must be installed in a way
that prevents users from deleting them."
"Over
the years, Google has signed separate agreements, including binding
arrangements, and engaged in conflicting practices to block distribution
channels and deter competitors," the Justice Department said in its
no-confidence complaint. Are Two decades ago, Google became the darling of Silicon
Valley as a scrape startup with an innovative way to search the emerging
Internet. This Google has gone too far. "
"It's
a very good case," said Eleanor Fox, an antitrust expert, and professor at
New York University School of Law. "If the Department of Justice is able
to prove the facts of the complaint, it should be able to prove that Google has
been contradictory and should be ordered to do so."
However,
Fox noted that the Supreme Court has made it difficult for the government to
win most no-confidence cases.
The
lawsuit was filed’ in federal court in Washington, D.C., and in eleven states,
along with the Republican attorney general, the U.S. filed a lawsuit against
Google.
Google
called the lawsuit a "deep mistake" and claimed in a lengthy
statement that the suite "would offer artificially inferior search
alternatives, increase phone prices, and make people search for them." Will
make it difficult to get the services they want to use. "
Dan
Ives, a senior Wall Street analyst who follows other tech giants for Google and
Wedbush Securities said the lawsuit against Google shows that Google and other
tech giants are clearly in a crossfire. Û”
"In
our opinion, a potential blue wave in November raises the risk of [Google and
another tech] giants getting in the way," Eves said. "Tech stocks are
taking away all the bad news right now, including this DOJ suite today because
investors are waiting for a wait and see big tech breakup concerns."
Shares
of Google Parent Alphabet rose 40% or 2.5% to 1,570 on Tuesday, despite news of
a government deal.
A
search behemoth
Google
has long dominated the online search space, accounting for more than
three-quarters of online searches and often more.
According
to the Department of Justice, Google handles 90 percent of search queries in
the United States, and 95 percent of mobile devices and the company has used
"conflicting tactics" to defend and expand its monopoly. According to
the government, Google's behavior has hurt users by reducing search quality by
limiting potential competition. Some educational studies have shown that users
prefer Google search that does not exclude content from competitors, such as
user reviews posted on non-Google websites.
The
complaint also alleges that Google, which has made the most of its Internet
advertising services has harmed its corporate clients by using such a dominant
position to attract advertisers in a competitive market. Enables you to charge
more than Rs.
The
lawsuit marks the government's most significant effort to protect the
competition since its serious breakup against Microsoft more than 20 years ago.
Given the ongoing investigation by major tech companies, including Apple,
Amazon and Facebook, into both the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade
Commission, this could be the opening year before other major no-confidence
motions by the government.
The
House Anti-Trust Subcommittee released a clear report earlier this month
recommending amendments to federal laws to make it easier to operate after the
four major tech companies, as well as the possible restructuring of those
companies. Or break them into parts.
The
Department of Justice will not immediately try to break Google, but may
eventually try to force a change in how the alphabet works, which may
eventually include splitting Google's various businesses.
The
California-based company based in Mountain View has long denied claims of
unfair competition. Google maintains that although its businesses are large,
they are useful and beneficial to consumers. It maintains that its services
face considerable competition and that innovations have begun to help people
manage their lives.
Most
Google services are offered free of charge in exchange for personal
information, which helps it sell its ads. Google insists it has no special
power to force people to use its free services or prevent them from going
elsewhere.
Anti-tech
management
The
Trump administration has long been in Google's sights. A senior economic
adviser to President Donald Trump said two years ago that the White House was
considering whether Google's search should be’ regulated. President Trump has
often criticized Google, recycling the Conservatives' baseless claims that the
search giant is biased’ against the Conservatives and suppresses their views in
searches, interfering in the US election and the Pentagon. But prefers to work
with the Chinese military.
However,
Justice Department officials, in a call with reporters on Tuesday, repeatedly
insisted that the government's case against Google was not politically
motivated. He also said the timing of the case was not linked’ to the
presidential election, which is two weeks away.
Deputy
Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen said, "This case has nothing to do with the
president. It is about competitive positions, in which there has been a
two-sided role throughout the board, of interest."
Rosen
said the issue was not linked’ to concerns about liberal bias on Google and
other social media platforms. "There are concerns that social media and
some other technologies are biased," Rosen said. "They are very
different from the questions in this case."
New
York's attorney general, Letitia James, who was not involved in the
government's no-confidence motion said her state and others were continuing to
investigate what they called Google's anti-controversial methods. James said in
a statement on Tuesday that his investigation was being wrapped up’ and that if
New York or any other state wanted to file a lawsuit, it would try to
strengthen the case with government action filed on Tuesday.
"This
is a historic time for both federal and state antitrust authorities, as we work
to preserve competition and innovation in our technology markets," James
said in a statement.
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