Leave it to Big Government to Stick Their Nose Up At Google
The staff report from the agency’s bureau of competition recommended the commission bring a lawsuit challenging three Google practices. The move would have triggered one of the highest-profile antitrust cases since the Justice Department sued Microsoft Corp. in the 1990s. A boy did that work for them... *sighs*
One of the big issues in question was whether Google used anticompetitive tactics for its search engine. Apparently the competition staff recommended against a lawsuit, although it said Google’s actions resulted in “significant harm” to rivals. I guess by "harm" they really mean "they created a superior platform that kicked our asses and we couldn't keep up. In three other areas, the report found evidence the company used its "monopoly behavior" to help its own business and hurt its rivals. This would include establishing business partnerships with technology manufacturers and having such companies use Google products as defaults to consumers. BUT the consumer still has the option to opt out, so again this seems to be another wasted effort by which the Government is looking to how they can squeeze money out of a seemingly multi-billion dollar venture.
Google General Counsel Kent Walker said in a statement Thursday that the FTC ultimately “agreed that there was no need to take action on how we rank and display search results.” He added: “Speculation about potential consumer harm turned out to be entirely wrong. Since the investigation closed two years ago, the ways people access information online have only increased, giving consumers more choice than ever before.”
Google has undeniable power and fiscal influence with a reach that arguably is more than that if the US Government itself and there in lies the issue. Oh and for those that don't like Google, you can always rely on DuckDuckGo.
