Unusual settlement: Lawsuit against Google has nothing to do with the US election campaign – News



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Everything is currently campaigning in the United States. Therefore, Attorney General William Barr found it necessary to emphasize that the lawsuit against Google had nothing to do with politics.

In particular, nothing to do with accusations from conservative circles that big tech corporations restricted their freedom of expression, a lament that has been heard often since Twitter and Facebook cracked down on false information.

Accusation: competition is stifling

But Google is Google and not Facebook or Twitter, and the lawsuit is aimed solely at abuse of the monopoly on Internet searches. The US Department of Justice considers exclusive contracts with mobile phone manufacturers to be illegal.

Like Apple’s. Google is protecting its search engine monopoly and stifling competition. Ultimately, American consumers suffered harm as a result.

Google, for its part, announced that it was a “flawed” complaint. Users would choose Google voluntarily because it was the best search engine and not because they were forced to.

Closed against big technology

The monopoly lawsuit against Google has been brewing in Washington for a year. And the Department of Justice is not alone. Democrats in the House of Representatives and 48 states also want to crack down on the market power of Google and possibly other big tech companies like Amazon and Facebook.

There is speculation in the media about why the lawsuit against Google is so close to the election. But that has little to do with electoral campaigns. Because it’s hard to imagine that the issue could move voters.

Rather, the ambition of Attorney General William Barr is the driving force here. He wants to push the historic cartel process against Google on the launch pad while in office. Because the reelection of your boss in the White House is very uncertain.

Isabelle jacobi

Isabelle jacobi

US Correspondent, SRF

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After studying in the United States and Bern, Jacobi worked for Radio SRF from 1999 to 2005. He then worked as a freelance journalist in New York. In 2008 she returned to SRF as a producer at Echo der Zeit and became editor-in-chief in 2012. Jacobi has been a US correspondent in Washington since the summer of 2017.

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