“After having carefully considered and weighed the witness testimony and evidence, the court reaches the following conclusion: Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly. . . . It has violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act.” –Judge Amit Mehta
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‘Google Is a Monopolist,’ Judge Rules in Landmark Antitrust Case (by David McCabe, NYT, Aug 5, 2024)
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Google has an illegal monopoly on search, judge rules (by Brian Fung and Clare Duffy, CNN, Aug 6, 2024)
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Judge Rules Google Is a Monopolist (by Matt Stoller, BIG, Aug 6, 2024)
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Now that Google is a monopolist, what’s next? (by Jay Peters, The Verge, Aug 6, 2024)
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The Google antitrust remedy should extinguish surveillance, not democratize it (by Cory Doctorow, Aug 7, 2024)
. . . drawing from the above sources, we learn:
• Biggest tech news in over 20 years, since Microsoft's DOJ antitrust trial (1998-2000). Microsoft lost, then appealed in 2001, and the government settled in 2001.
• This Google case was brought about by the Department of Justice (the antitrust division is led by Jonathan Kanter) and a coalition of states.
• Google was found to be a monopoly for several reasons, one of which is the enormous amount Google pays Apple every year to be the default search on iPhones and iPads.
• Allegations of destroying evidence (even Microsoft didn’t do that)
• Next step is remedy proceedings. The eventual remedy could be anything from tiny ("please don't do that again") to medium (injunction against bribing Apple for iOS default) to huge (breakup of the company). Let's hope for a breakup!
• Google will almost certainly appeal, which could take years to resolve. It could go to the Supreme Court. At any point the government could end the case with a settlement.
• Meantime Google is facing a
separate lawsuit, also brought by the DOJ and several states, for antitrust behavior in Google ads. The trial starts next month.
