On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to review the American Innovation and Choice Online Act, and technology companies have been pushing back. Like Apple earlier today, Google this afternoon published a blog post detailing specific “harmful consequences” on products as a result of these antitrust bills.
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In response to the lawsuit filed by attorneys general from 36 states and Washington DC over alleged Play Store antitrust practices, Google has issued a public-facing counter this evening.
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In the US, Google is already subject to advertising and Search complaints. Several US states are now targeting the Google Play Store in a new antitrust lawsuit.
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Today, a second group of states filed a lawsuit that alleged Google Search “hinders” access to “specialized vertical providers” that provide travel and entertainment information. Google’s response to that antitrust claim is focused on how Search today is intended to benefit users.
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In October, the Justice Department alleged that Google paying device makers and browser vendors to make Search the default was monopolistic. States are now filing and preparing their own antitrust lawsuits focused on Google’s ad business and Search ranking.
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Following the US Justice Department filing its antitrust case over Google’s search dominance, the company quickly said that the lawsuit was “deeply flawed.” Google has since published a longer defense that challenges the facts laid out by the government and argues that end users choose Search naturally.
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Following an over year-long investigation and Congressional testimony from CEOs in July, the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday published a report on “Competition in Digital Markets.” Google is one of the four companies facing scrutiny for its dominance and antitrust concerns.
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The House Judiciary’s Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial, and Administrative Law today is hosting a hearing on “Online Platforms and Market Power.” In addition to the CEOs of Amazon, Apple, and Facebook, Sundar Pichai will be testifying about Google’s Search and advertising dominance, as well as antitrust concerns from Congress. Follow along as we highlight the most interesting questions and answers.
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The chief executives of Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, and Facebook tomorrow will appear before Congress to answer questions about their market dominance. Sundar Pichai’s written statement was released this evening, and it provides a high-level overview of Google’s defense against antitrust allegations.
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The Financial Times reports that tight deadlines given to four lawyers suggest that the European Commission’s Android anti-trust case against Google could see formal charges finalized this week, possibly as early as Wednesday.
With Google potentially facing a fine of up to $6.6B after the European Commission charged the company of abusing its dominant position in search, its lawyers have now filed a 130-page rebuttal. In it, the company attempts to use a legal technicality to argue that it cannot be fined for favouring its own products in search results …
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Just as one European antitrust case against Google reached its conclusion, with a second one underway, it may be facing a third, reports the Financial Times.
The first antitrust case found that Google abused its dominant position in search to promote its own products over that of competitors. with the company told to expect large fines. A second one is underway, to determine whether Google forced smartphone manufacturers to favor its own apps over competitor ones in return for permission to use Android.
The FT now reports that a number of companies selling online advertising have asked the European Commission to consider a third case, to investigate Google’s dominance of the web advertising business …
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As expected, the EU has formally accused Google of abusing its dominant position in search to favor links to its own products over those offered by competitors. The complaint takes the form of a Statement of Objections: a formal method of announcing that it believes Google has acted illegally and that a full investigation is underway.
The Commission’s preliminary view is that such conduct infringes EU antitrust rules because it stifles competition and harms consumers. EU Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said that “Google now has the opportunity to convince the Commission to the contrary. However, if the investigation confirmed our concerns, Google would have to face the legal consequences and change the way it does business in Europe.”
Google has not wasted any time in attempting to convince the Commission otherwise, arguing in a blog post that the evidence shows that Google has not harmed traffic to competitor websites …
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Senator Mike Lee, who chairs the Senate’s antitrust panel, will conduct a “preliminary inquiry” into whether conversations Google had with FTC investigators influenced the commission’s decision to clear the company of anti-competitive behavior, reports the WSJ.
The senator could later expand his inquiry to include conversations people in the White House had with the FTC and Google, people in his office said.
The FTC last week denied that its decision had been “a close call” following leaked documents suggesting that it had been. The documents also provided some fascinating insights into Google’s business model.
Google declined to comment on this latest development, but has previously said that its meetings in the White House were not related to the FTC investigation.
A European Parliament motion calling for the breakup of Google, separating out the search business from the company’s other activities, has been overwhelmingly approved, reports the WSJ.
In a vote in Strasbourg, 384 legislators voted in favor of the controversial initiative, with 174 against and 56 abstentions […]
“Clear adoption by the EP of Digital Single Market motion, including unbundling for search engine if needed,” tweeted Ramon Tremosa I Balcells, a lawmaker from Spain who backed the proposal.
The vote comes just a day after a separate European call for the controversial ‘right to be forgotten‘ ruling to be extended to google.com as well as the European versions of its sites …
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The European Union’s long-running anti-trust case against Google, in which the search company was accused of using its dominant position in search to stifle competition, looks set to finally be resolved – though we may have to wait until Spring to learn the details.
Reuters reports that Google has made new proposals, which the EU suggests is likely to lead to a settlement.
Joaquin Almunia told lawmakers in the European Parliament he believed the new offer made it easier to see Google’s rivals when making an internet search.
“We have reached a key moment in this case,” Almunia said.
“Now with the significant improvements on the table I think we have the possibility to work again.
“If our investigation of this improved proposal is satisfactory then we will continue the commitments route and end up with a formal decision next spring,” he said, adding: “I think that the settlement route remains the best choice” …
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European Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia (photo: Reuters)
Google’s proposed changes to its search results don’t go far enough to address claims that it is using its dominant position to freeze out competitors, says the EU (via Reuters).
The decision comes as no surprise after EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said back in May that he was “almost 100 percent certain” to reject the proposals, in which Google’s key offers were to clearly separate organic results from sponsored links and to provide links to at least three rival search services in its results …
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