US Treasury Secretary Urges DOJ to Consider if Google is a Monopoly
glakes
11:09 am on May 24, 2018 (gmt 0)
On Monday, US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin urged the Justice Department to take "a serious look" at whether tech companies including Google hold a monopoly.
"As these technology companies have a greater and greater impact on the economy, I think that you have to look at the power they have," Mnuchin told CNBC in an interview.
Well of course Google is a monopoly. They monopolize search, search advertising, advertising and basically are the gatekeeper of the entire internet for most countries. That's an emense level of power.
The question is, what is the DOJ going to do about it? Antitrust hasn't been successful since the 2001 with Microsoft, and even then it didn't accomplish much to change the landscape.
QuaterPan
11:47 am on May 24, 2018 (gmt 0)
Antitrust hasn't been successful since the 2001 with Microsoft, and even then it didn't accomplish much to change the landscape.
Thanks to Google and Facebook, Microsoft's monopoly was challenged and so no longer a monopoly.
glakes
11:59 am on May 24, 2018 (gmt 0)
Antitrust hasn't been successful since the 2001 with Microsoft, and even then it didn't accomplish much to change the landscape.
Very true. I believe the reason why applying antitrust laws to modern day businesses fails is the direct result of those laws having been created back in the horse and buggy days without ever being modernized.
MrSavage
2:35 pm on May 24, 2018 (gmt 0)
Even the discussion around this subject and Google will affect change because it's all about PR. Microsoft was affected more by the public backlash than anything else. Even a failed attempt at proving Google is a monopoly will create some positives (for people other than apologists, beneficiaries, and investors). Google is scared S less of bad PR but I don't think they can pull off a Bill Cosby on this one.
glitterball
3:21 pm on May 25, 2018 (gmt 0)
Antitrust hasn't been successful since the 2001 with Microsoft, and even then it didn't accomplish much to change the landscape.
The regulators were too slow to act then, and now. By the time any real action is taken, the damage has already been done.
Microsoft's power may be diminished, but the last time I looked, they were still dominating the desktop OS market. The only difference is that the desktop OS doesn't matter as much any more.
tangor
6:53 am on May 27, 2018 (gmt 0)
While it looks like a slow walk at the moment, don't discredit the swamp creatures for knowing a monopoly from some other form of business. Also depends who's in control of the swamp as to whether any actions will be taken. And g, as well as fb and t, qualify as monopolies in their respective niches, killing competition, squelching change and all that happy stuff.
This being a USA election year don't be surprised if the interest in pursuit of regulation might be on the horizon.
