Justice Department sues Google over alleged search monopoly
20 October 2020
The Justice Department and 11 states Tuesday filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google, accusing the company of using anticompetitive tactics to illegally monopolize the online search and search advertising markets.
Why it matters: The long-awaited suit is Washington's first major blow against the tech giants that many on both the right and left argue have grown too large and powerful. Still, this is just step one in what could be a lengthy and messy court battle.
Details: Google has unfairly shored up its dominance by locking in its search engine as the default in browsers and on mobile devices including Apple iPhones and phones that run on Google's own Android operating system, DOJ argues in the suit, filed in the D.C. Circuit Court.
- Google's use of what DOJ charges are exclusionary contracts and its own properties have "foreclosed competition for internet search," the agency says in the suit.
- That in turn has thwarted rivals from effectively competing against Google in search advertising, DOJ contends.
What they're saying: Google's conduct in search is "illegal under traditional antitrust principles and must be stopped," DOJ attorney Ryan Shores said on a call with reporters Tuesday.
- "Consumers and advertisers suffer from less choice, less innovation and less competitive advertising prices," Shores said.
The other side: Google has long maintained its might in search is a natural result of developing a solid product and has denied engaging in anti-competitive tactics. The company also contends it faces healthy competition in its major revenue-generating business lines including advertising and mobile.
- "Today's lawsuit by the Department of Justice is deeply flawed," a Google spokesperson said. "People use Google because they choose to — not because they’re forced to or because they can’t find alternatives."
Of note: The 11 state AGs joining DOJ on the suit are all Republicans. It's a far smaller group than the broad bipartisan coalition of AGs that has been probing Google for potential antitrust abuses.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.