The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has initiated an effort to limit Google’s dominance in the search engine market. This proposal could reshape the landscape of Big Tech.
In a filing on Oct. 8, the DOJ called for the division of Google’s search business as part of an ongoing antitrust lawsuit, alleging the company of sustaining an illegal monopoly.
DOJ targets Google
The DOJ’s plan aims for significant changes to break Google’s control over search and advertising. It includes structural adjustments, such as separating parts of Google’s search business, and behavioral changes focused on safeguarding consumers and promoting competition.
One crucial aspect of the proposal is to prevent Google from using its dominance to control emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.
The DOJ also recommended that Google should share search data and indexes with competitors, and that websites should have the option to not have their content utilized to train AI models.
In addition, the DOJ proposes the establishment of a “court-appointed technical committee” to supervise Google’s compliance with these new regulations.
Source: Adam Kovacevich
While these measures are not finalized, they are all under consideration in the DOJ’s proposal.
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Google responded on Oct. 9 with a blog post defending its business practices and cautioning about the broader repercussions for the tech industry.
“Government overreach in a fast-moving industry may have negative unintended consequences for American innovation and America’s consumers.”
However, this is not the only situation where Big Tech companies have been criticized for their monopolistic business practices in the past year.
Why it’s happening
The DOJ’s action against Google is the result of years of scrutiny over the company’s search monopoly, maintained through exclusive agreements with web browsers and phone manufacturers.
These agreements ensure that Google’s search engine remains the default choice for billions of users, stifling competition and innovation in the digital ecosystem.
As highlighted by the DOJ in their proposal, this dominance limits choices for consumers and gives Google disproportionate control over the information flow. On Sept. 23, the DOJ filed a similar case against payments giant Visa, referring to its practices as a payments monopoly.
However, in the case of Google and the broader Big Tech industry, there’s more at stake beyond just search engines.
Big Tech under watch
Regulators are increasingly concerned about the influence Big Tech companies have in shaping the future of AI, which is expected to drive the next phase of technological innovation.
One concern is that Google’s dominance in search could translate into monopolistic control over AI as well. The more data Google gathers, the more powerful its AI models become, raising concerns about competition in the fast-growing field of generative AI.
Authorities in the European Union have already launched investigations into Big Tech companies like Apple, Google, and Meta for violations of its Digital Markets Act in March 2024.
In August 2024, regulators in the United Kingdom looked into web services giant Amazon over its $4 billion investment in Anthropic AI, one of the leading models in the industry.
In its response to the DOJ, Google cautioned that breaking up its search business would impact its AI endeavors and overall profitability, making it harder for the company to compete globally.
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