Latest news with #monopoly
Bloomberg
2 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Texas Google Antitrust Trial Delayed Pending Related DOJ Case
A judge delayed an Aug. 11 trial against Alphabet Inc. 's Google over claims by a Texas-led group of states that the company illegally monopolized the market for tools to publish online display advertisements. US District Judge Sean Jordan in Plano, Texas, will reschedule the trial after a related US Justice Department case is resolved. It's the second delay for the case, which was initially scheduled for late March.
Fast Company
2 days ago
- Business
- Fast Company
Consumers win in Big Tech antitrust cases
Can you imagine your life without Google? Google Search, Google Chrome, Google Maps, Google Wallet, Google Drive, the Google Pixel phone—you could probably live your entire digital life within the Google ecosystem. Many, including the Justice Department, say that's a problem. The department recently won antitrust cases against Google's search engine and ad placement businesses. This may all feel abstract and perhaps invisible to most consumers. Google, Microsoft, Apple —they constitute the digital water we're all swimming in, and their monopoly raises prices, stifles innovation, and shapes our lives often to our detriment. The landmark antitrust case against Google marks a big victory against this status quo. Here's why it's so important. Monopolies create higher advertising costs Imagine promoting your business in a small town. You might buy an ad in the newspaper, put up a billboard, and run a spot on the local radio. Because these outlets are independent, you have lower prices and more advertising options. Now, imagine that the newspaper, billboard, and radio station are all owned by the same company. That shifts the dynamic: Because there is no competition for your ad dollars, prices are higher. That's essentially what the Google Ad business achieved, especially considering how critical digital advertising has become to businesses. People aren't watching commercials anymore. They're browsing the web during a commercial break. Google's monopoly on digital ads allows it to raise prices, making it harder for smaller businesses to compete and thrive. Google's monopoly created a less user-friendly internet Historically, about 90% of search traffic comes from Google, giving it a lot of power. For instance, Google uses an algorithm that examines web pages to score how relevant it is for search phrases, like 'pizza shop Minneapolis' or 'leaking fridge how to fix.' Because Google search is so dominant, people and companies who build and run websites do so with Google's algorithm in mind. That means the user experience takes a back seat to Google's preferences. If you've been to any recipe website lately, you know what I'm talking about. In a recent episode of the podcast Stay Tuned with Preet Bharara, former FTC chair Lina Khan noted that a monopoly is when a company can offer worse products and/or raise costs without suffering any substantial consequences in the market. 'You can understand this in some ways as a firm becoming too big to care,' Khan said. Many say the internet has become increasingly awful to use. The first page of search results are often dreck, in my opinion, written for Google's robots, not for humans. It's getting harder to find the information you're looking for, so a lot of people append their searches with tags for Reddit and YouTube, e.g. 'Hiking itinerary New Zealand Reddit' or 'best salmon dip recipe YouTube,' to cut through the SEO slop. Google's search monopoly could be a chokepoint for information Because of its dominance, Google can evolve in the direction of its own interests, rather than the interests of the user individually or collectively. It's not wild to imagine that Google can throttle searches for sensitive topics. During COVID, a 2020 Senate Commerce Committee hearing called Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and then-Twitter's then-CEO Jack Dorsey to question them about censoring conservative voices. Back in 2017, the World Socialist Web Site alleged that Google restrict ed access to 13 progressive and anti-war websites. For users, the question is not whether Google's algorithmic policies line up with your political views but whether Google can put its thumb on the scale regarding your access to information, based on what's advantageous for Google . It definitely can, and it definitely has. Monopolies stifle innovation Google can throw its weight around to thwart competition. In 2023, internet users noticed that YouTube (which Google owns) ran five seconds slower on the Mozilla Firefox browser than on Google Chrome. Ostensibly, Google tuned YouTube to purposely run slower on a competitor's browser to encourage users to switch to Chrome. Google, like many large companies, tends to acquire burgeoning competition rather than innovate in-house. Google has acquired hundreds of companies, from data analytics firms to rival search engines, from virtual reality developers to mapping products. When a company can buy out all the competition, consumers lose out on new ideas and better products, because the company has no incentive to pursue them. The ruling The ruling found that Google's default status with makers of smartphones, tablets, and laptops locked out rivals like Bing and DuckDuckGo, and that the integration of Google's adtech tools created a feedback loop that entrenched its monopoly. Google's ad business is facing its own antitrust lawsuit and may be broken up. The Department of Justice argues that Google's dominance in search (and its vast collection of user data) positions Google to achieve a similar feedback loop in AI -powered search and assistants—which could create a new monopoly. The DOJ has proposed forcing Google to sell Chrome and license some of its core search technologies to competitors, as well as ending default search agreements and allowing more visibility into how search results are ranked. The DOJ proposed Google give advance notice of AI-related acquisitions. Both sides have given their closing arguments and now await the judge's ruling, which is expected by August. This case is a blow against Big Tech in general, which has monopolized almost the entire digital world. I can only hope the FTC ' s antitrust case against Meta plays out in a similar fashion, and facilitates a return to a freer, more innovative digital world.
CTV News
2 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Competition Bureau drops inquiry into American attraction dominance in Banff and Jasper
Canada's Competition Bureau has dropped its probe into an American company's dominance of the Banff and Jasper sightseeing industries. Last summer, operators at Norquay, Lake Louise and Banff Sunshine filed a complaint against Arizona-based Viad Corp. At the time, they accused Viad and its subsidiary Pursuit of monopolistic practices after acquiring the Jasper SkyTram. The purchase brought the company's share of the area's so-called 'prime paid' tourist attractions to six of nine: it also operates the Banff Gondola at Sulphur Mountain, the Columbia Icefield Skywalk, the Columbia Icefield Adventure, the Lake Minnewanka Cruise and Jasper's Maligne Lake Cruise. Further, Viad owns the bus line Brewster Express—which transports thousands of tourists every day throughout the two national parks and their main sights—and 10 local hotels, including Banff's Mount Royal and Elk and Avenue. After the SkyTram purchase, competitors told CTV News Viad should be forced to sell off assets to increase consumer choice in the area. But this spring, the Competition Bureau of Canada sent Norquay Ski and Sightseeing Resort's Adam Waterous a note saying its investigation had come back clear. 'Based on the information obtained by the Bureau,' the letter reads, 'it does not appear the acquisition has resulted in or is likely to result in a substantial lessening or prevention of competition.' 'The commissioner has discontinued the inquiry.'
Malay Mail
7 days ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
MACC probes milk powder supplier over alleged tender price manipulation, RM120m supply monopoly
KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 — A company supplying milk powder is being investigated by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) for suspected manipulation of tender prices by between 10 and 50 per cent depending on the zone, apart from monopolising the market in supply contracts to a government department. According to sources, the company, owned by a married couple with their sons as the main shareholders, is believed to have been involved in supplying products worth RM120 million that did not meet the standards of the Standards and Industrial Research Institute of Malaysia (Sirim). 'The focus of the investigation is on tax issues, corruption and monopoly practices in the supply of milk powder tenders to a government department. 'The investigation is also looking into the ownership of the company, including the network of other distributors that play a role in the milk powder supply chain,' according to the source. Sources said so far 75 accounts have been frozen involving 24 individual accounts and 51 company accounts with a total value of RM174.6 million. 'Various documents involving the milk powder supply contract and financial documents were also seized, including mobile phones and laptops to enable further investigations to be carried out,' he said. Sources said so far 10 witnesses have been called to give statements to MACC, while another son of the couple who own the company is expected to appear at the MACC office next Tuesday or Wednesday. 'There have been no new arrests so far, but investigations are still continuing, including against the management of a government department that are directly involved in the milk powder supply contract,' he said. The media yesterday reported that three family members suspected of being the mastermind behind a milk supply tender monopoly for a government department over the past two decades were arrested under Op White here, last Tuesday. MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki reportedly said the family was suspected of being the mastermind behind a RM120 million milk powder supply cartel involving a government department. He said all the premises raided were suspected of storing all documents related to milk powder supply contracts since 2019 following MACC's investigation into two owners and a director of a milk powder supplier company that is believed to not meet Sirim's standards. The investigation is being conducted under Section 16 of the MACC Act 2009 in addition to identifying criminal elements under the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (AMLATFPUAA). — Bernama
Bloomberg
10-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
New Fortress' $20 Billion Puerto Rico Deal Halted by Board
By and Ruth Liao Updated on Save Puerto Rico's finance watchdog is refusing to OK a $20 billion natural gas supply deal that it said would give New Fortress Energy Inc. a near monopoly over the island's energy future. The Financial Oversight and Management Board has 'profound concerns' about a proposed 15-year contract between Genera PR — a New Fortress subsidiary that operates the territory's power plants — and the company unit that delivers liquefied gas, according to a letter to Puerto Rico's energy czar, Josue Colon.
