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Google, the technology giant known around the world for its search engine, also has many other technologies, such as online advertising, email and video.
This gives a lot of consideration to US antitrust enforcement officials, who would have shown a new interest in bringing lawsuits against Google.
Governments around the world are increasingly confused by the power accumulated by large technology companies, with Google's dominance in research, Facebook in social networks and Amazon in e-commerce causing the greatest concern .
In the most dramatic scenario, it might be wise to divide businesses into smaller parts.
The US Department of Justice is currently preparing an investigation into Google's business practices in research and other areas, and whether they violate antitrust law, according to press reports.
Neither the company nor the Department of Justice will confirm or deny that an investigation has been launched.
The Federal Trade Commission, which shares control of competition with the courts, opened an antitrust investigation on Google but closed it in 2013 without taking any action.
The company has voluntarily made changes after the FTC survey, including allowing advertisers to use their Google advertising campaign information to create campaigns with competitors.
But a report from FTC staff released years later showed that the agency's staff had urged commissioners appointed by the president to sue Google. It never happened.
It is unclear what specific areas of Google's activity the Department of Justice could probe. But here are some areas where US antitrust officers could intervene:
According to eMarketer estimates for 2019, Google largely dominates the digital advertising business figure, controlling 31.1% of global digital investments. Facebook is far behind with 20.2%.
European antitrust regulators have fined Google $ 1.7 billion for freezing competition in the online advertising industry – the third big fine imposed on the company in less than two years .
Nevertheless, the last sanction should not have much effect on the activities of Google. It applies to a limited portion of the Google ad in which Google sells ads alongside Google search results on third-party websites. This involves practices that the company says it has already completed, and the amount represents only a fraction of the $ 31 billion in profits made by its parent company, the conglomerate Alphabet Inc., last year.
In the United States, Google's search engine handles two out of three queries. European regulators discovered that Google had manipulated its search engine to gain an unfair advantage over other online sales sites in the lucrative online trading market, fining it $ 2.8 billion. dollars. Google disputes these findings and is still appealing the 2017 decision.
The FTC staff report released at the conclusion of the agency's investigation showed that the staff's legal recommendations dismissed by the commissioners implied allegations that Google had tinkered with the results of its research in order to stifle competition.
Lawmakers from both parties seem determined to consider whether Google tailors its research results to promote its own policy agenda.
Another huge fine of $ 5 billion of European controllers was imposed on Google in July 2018 for finding a violation of the dominance of its Android operating system by forcing handset and tablet manufacturers to install the devices. Google applications, thereby reducing consumer choice.
The company appealed the decision and also made changes to avoid additional fines. It started this spring by offering smartphone users from the European Union a choice of browsers and search applications on Android. After an Android update, users will see two new screens giving them the new options.
Android users who open the Google Play store after the update will have the option to install up to five search applications and five browsers. Apps are included based on their popularity and displayed in random order.
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