UPSC Articles
US Justice Department sues Google in Antitrust Case
Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Technology; Internet
In news
- Recently, the US Justice Department sued Google.
- It has accused the company of illegally abusing its dominance in internet search.
- It has been harming competitors and consumers.
Key takeaways
- The action against the company comes after a report by the US House of Representatives panel.
- The panel had found that Google, Facebook Inc, Apple Inc and Amazon.com Inc all abused their power as gatekeepers in the digital economy to diminish competitive threats.
- Google is illegally protecting its dominant position in the market for search and search advertising through the deals it has signed with tech companies.
- Google has contracts with smartphone makers that use its Android operating system. These require them to install its search engine as the default.
- All this stifles competition and innovation from smaller startups and harms consumers by reducing the quality of search and limiting privacy protections and alternative search options.
Do you know?
- Many countries have broad laws that protect consumers and regulate how companies operate their businesses.
- The goal of these laws is to provide an equal playing field.
- These are called antitrust laws.
- Also, various antitrust probes are going on against Google in India.
- Google has had run-ins with regulators, especially the Competition Commission of India (CCI).
