It looks like Google may soon be on the receiving end of an antitrust investigation by the US Department of Justice (DOJ). According to multiple sources, the DOJ reportedly spent the past several weeks deliberating on its verdict against the search engine.
The antitrust investigation comes years after the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) brought Google to court for having violated its privacy policy. Specifically, the privacy of consumers using Apple’s Safari browser at the time. The FTC won the case, and Google was forced to pay a US$22.5 million (~RM94 million) penalty judgement.
Fast forward to today, Google’s parent company, Alphabet Inc., has racked up revenue in excess of US$136 billion (~RM569 billion) in 2018. A core reason why politicians and consumers in the US are wondering if mega corporations such as Alphabet should be broken up.
The US isn’t the only country where Google has encountered issues with government bodies. Back in March, the EU slapped Google in the face with a €1.49 billion (~RM6.99 billion) fine for blatantly breaking EU Antitrust Laws. Margaret Vestager, the EU Commissioner, accused Google of “abusing its monopoly in online advertising” and cemented its dominance in online search adverts by imposing “anti-competitive contractual restrictions on third-party websites”.
At the time of writing, Google has yet to respond in regards to the investigation. It’s also not clear as to what exactly the DOJ will be focusing its probe on, but the general consensus is that US government body may be less harsh than its European counterparts delivering its punishment.
(Source: WSJ, The Verge, CNBC)
