Breaking up is Hard to Do: U.S. DOJ Considers Breaking Up Google over Anti-Trust Law Violations

[Zarathustra[H]]

Haven't seen this one here yet, and it is about as big as tech news gets.

At issue is several avenues where Google has either paid other tech companies to be their default search engine (Like Apple) or used their dominance in search to further stifle competition in other areas.

Potentially a decision may be expected by the courts by August 2025.

This comes after a recent order that Google must open up its Android app store to competition. A Federal judge in Virginia is also set to weigh in on whether or not Google holds an illegal monopoly in online advertising.

 

[KazeoHin]

I probably should happen, but unfortunately this will never happen. It wouldn't surprise me if Google, Apple and Microsoft are worth more than the US government (minus the military) so really, all ANY government can do is 'ask nicely'

 

[Lakados]

I probably should happen, but unfortunately this will never happen. It wouldn't surprise me if Google, Apple and Microsoft are worth more than the US government (minus the military) so really, all ANY government can do is 'ask nicely'

I wouldn’t be surprised if Microsoft and Google were providing the backbone infrastructure of the US Military.

 

[Fifliffl]

If only Alphabet wasn't a CIA side alreadry

 

[THRESHIN]

Well they did it to Microsoft years ago....sort of lol. Wait and see I guess.

 

[Twisted Kidney]

Searching with Google is shit now, most of their services are being enshitified for the shareholders, it’s AT&T all over again.

The breakup of AT&T led to a period of rapid communications tech development. These massive incumbents are never good for an industry and M&A is always harmful to consumers and employees. Apple, Google, Huwawei, TSMC, and any number of other huge companies collectively spend trillions every single year trying to suppress innovation and stifle competition.

Maybe stop pumping trillions in subsidies into these corporations as well?

 

[nthexwn]

Citizens United ensures that corporations like this can regulate our government. Not the other way around. There is no hope of another AT&T style breakup ever happening again.

 

[Axman]

Citizens United ensures that corporations like this can regulate our government.

Not relevant.

 

[toast0]

I probably should happen, but unfortunately this will never happen. It wouldn't surprise me if Google, Apple and Microsoft are worth more than the US government (minus the military) so really, all ANY government can do is 'ask nicely'

AT&T was a massive company with government entanglements and it got broken up after a ten year court process.

The upside for shareholders the sum of the parts was even bigger than when it was one company. Of course, 20 years later, ATT reformed, like a T-1000, but it's not the all seeing, all powerful entity it once was.

There's a few different ways one could split Google apart and end the cross-subsidies and have a chance of fair competition. IMHO, I'd split up into several groups, each with major market share, but have some restriction on cross-group contracting.

Something like Search, Advertising, Cloud, Operating Systems, Consumer Services (mail and stuff, probably including G Suite), Telecom (Fiber, Fi and Google Voice). Who knows where Labs and Waymo go.

Then, at least to start, make the contracts between Advertising and other groups, and Cloud and other groups have to be public and with non-exclusive terms. If you have similar volume and want the same terms, you can get them. Leave this part a little bit open, if this isn't enough, you want to force the groups to find non-group vendors for some of their needs. And you want to prohibit other groups from building their own advertising exchange regardless, as well.

 

[Zarathustra[H]]

Not relevant.

I mean it sortof is.

If these trillion dollar companies are freely allowed to manipulate the public discourse using their money (which they are since Citizens United) then it becomes exponentially more difficult to push any policy they disapprove of, because they can just use delay tactics and funnel millions of dollars into political candidates they approve of, getting it killed before completion.

We get this situation, but on a societal level:


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euPiKKMsR8E

I'd go further, but I don't want to get into politcs and soapbox the thread.

 

[OnceSetThisCannotChange]

The should break them up into GOO and GLE.

Goo gets the search, GLE gets Android, Alphabet gets whatever is left.

 

[Axman]

I mean it sortof is.

No it's not.

 

[1_rick]

No it's not.

Citizens United was literally about the FEC blocking the release of a movie critical of Hillary Clinton right before a Presidential election. One of the biggest complaints one political party has about it is its effect on PACs and Super PACS--but that party enthusiastically uses them to obtain the very "dark money" they complain about.