SAN FRANCISCO – Dozens of states in the United States yesterday hit Google with its third antitrust suit in as many months, accusing the internet giant of abusing its internet search dominance to eliminate competition.
The suit by antitrust enforcers from 38 US states and territories is in line with, but goes beyond, a case filed by the US Justice Department against Google and its parent firm Alphabet earlier this year.
“Google’s anticompetitive actions have protected its general search monopolies and excluded rivals, depriving consumers of the benefits of competitive choices, forestalling innovation and undermining new entry or expansion,” said Colorado attorney-general Phil Weiser.
Nebraska attorney-general Doug Peterson called the antitrust assault on Google “historic”, saying the combined suits represented the biggest alliance since a case against Microsoft decades ago.
The suit came a day after a group of states led by Texas filed a separate antitrust suit, and asks to be consolidated with the federal case against Google.
The internet giant said the case will end up harming consumers if successful.
Google economic policy director Adam Cohen said in a post that the lawsuit “seeks to redesign search in ways that will deprive Americans of helpful information and hurt businesses’ ability to connect directly with customers”.
According to the internet giant, changes sought by the lawsuit will make search results worse for people searching on Google and businesses wanting to be found.
Matt Schruers, president of the Computer and Communications Industry Association, a technology trade group, said the suit is a misguided effort to force Google to redesign its search engine without regard to consumer interests.
“Search design has been benefiting from constant redesign and updates, and regulators in the US and abroad have concluded this has improved consumers’ experience,” he said.
Cars and speakers
The new suit charges that Google made deals to shut out competitors and endeavoured to lock out rivals, while getting its search and advertising systems into smart speakers, cars, smartphones and more.
“We are in a new time, a new era, and it is very critical that we in the field of enforcement in competition remain very engaged in the tech industry going forward,” Peterson said.
With Google’s services made available free of charge and economic harm to users tricky to prove, antitrust litigation might not be the most effective way to go at the internet giant, some attorneys-general taking part in the new suit conceded in a video call.
“Policymakers, Congress in particular, should be thinking of some regulation beyond antitrust,” Iowa attorney-general Tom Miller said on the call. – AFP, December 18, 2020
