Public Knowledge’s Post

Curious minds, what are your thoughts on this USA TODAY article? The recent Google antitrust trial is making waves, with implications that could reshape the landscape of search as we know it. Scary? Positive? I'm not sure yet. What impact do you think this trial will have on the future of search engines and digital competition? What do you think this means for Google Ads? So many questions! https://lnkd.in/eyrZc8Uz

The most significant tech antitrust trial of the 21st century thus far kicked off in US federal court Tuesday with the Department of Justice and 14 co-plaintiff states squaring off against the search engine giant. The DOJ accuses Google of unlawfully monopolizing the markets for general search services, search advertising, and general search text advertising in the via anticompetitive and exclusionary practices.During opening arguments, Kenneth Dintzer, deputy director in the DOJ's civil division, said, "This case is about the future of the internet, whether the Google search engine will ever face meaningful competition to protect that future." At the heart of the government's case is Google's use of contracts to maintain what Dintzer contends is a "default status" market share that tops 89% in the search engine market and 74% in the search ads business.To read this article in full, please click here

🔍 Google's search engine dominance has been hotly debated recently and it’s impossible to ignore the potential implications – both for the giant itself and the rest of the digital landscape. 🗂 This article https://lnkd.in/gQVFFc4G provides a meticulously detailed breakdown of the ongoing trial where Google stands accused of employing uncompetitive practices to maintain its dominance. 💡 It's really an eye-opening read - from the arguments surrounding Google's 90% market share, default search deals, allegations from search engine competitors, to potential anticompetitive conduct - it's all covered. And the best part? It presents a balanced view, showcasing all sides of this monumental case. 🔤 As people deeply involved or interested in digital advertising, tech, or law, this could affect the way we operate. I’m curious 🤔: how do YOU think a shift in search engine market power could impact the digital industry? 💬 Join the conversation and tell us what you think about this landmark case. Let’s engage and learn from each other’s perspectives. #GoogleAntitrustTrial #DigitalAdvertising #TechNews #SearchEngineMarket #AntitrustLaw Casey Jones.

📣 BREAKING! Google Search Dominates with over 90% Market Share. But at What Cost? New revelations indicate that Google not only commands over 90% of the search market but is also quietly inflating its advertising costs. This raises critical questions about market fairness and advertising sustainability for businesses of all sizes. 👉 Read The Full Story Below #BreakingNews #MarketDominance #GoogleSearch #AdSpend #DigitalMarketingTrends #TEQNOCO

What is the most likely outcome of the Google antitrust trial? The U.S. government is putting Google, Alphabet Inc.’s flagship subsidiary, on one of the biggest antitrust trial in 20 years for its alleged monopoly in search and search advertising. The Department of Justice and a group of States, in complaints filed back in 2020, claim Google illegally maintains its dominance through restrictive agreements with browser and phone makers such as Apple, for instance. These agreements make Google the default search engine on most U.S. phones. Google says its deals supply browser providers with what they want: a single default search option for customers, that its agreements don’t prevent its partners from offering other search engines, that its partners chose Google because it outstrips rival search engines, and that consumers can switch away from its preloaded search engine to other products on their own. That so few users seem to switch away from Google search engine, its market share is believed to be around 90%, is unlikely to be driven by exclusionary practices, and rather hints towards users sticking with a superior product. Google’s massive investments, most recently in AI, to constantly innovate shows it intends to win the race mostly by delivering a superior search engine for users, which is the best way to deserve superior economics over time. It is also legitimate to try make it easy for users to access services, and it is a widely accepted practice in other industries. The Department of Justice has one month to present its case, and the closing arguments and a judgment aren’t expected until next year. The most likely outcome of this trial seems to be new constraints on Google’s ability to pay smartphone makers to be the default search engine on phones. A break up of the company, as some have suggested, would be disproportionate and might not even address this situation properly. Looking forward to follow the trial.

In the US Antitrust Trial this week, Google pretended to know little about its own business and history (which is properly evidenced in the attachment). Even in year 2023, Google still argued, for instance 1. that search ads and display ads are interchangeable for advertisers; 2. that Google was at the forefront of pushing the ads industry toward a more privacy-protective future and that not informing advertisers about the search queries users entered before clicking on their ads was driven by such motive. 3. that there was no real alternative than for Apple to pre-install Google Search. To put that in perspective, within the very same week alone, Google: 1. launched a "Google Ads Data Manager" that encourages advertisers to connect their "first-party customer data such as email addresses, names, home addresses, and phone numbers” to Google's products to make the latter better; 2. introduced new results pages where Shopping Ads occupy the entire visible space – not a single organic result in sight; 3. launched an AI-based image generator that allows end users to recreate and freely distribute images indexed from photographers without their consent. Google plays a cat-and-mouse game with everyone. The company moves faster and breaks more things than legal and public debate can keep up with. The "antitrust trial of the century" comes a decade too late. The complexity of Google's ecosystem renders it unlikely that the remedies will sufficiently address the many fundamental market failures at hand. All this suggests that we need a dedicated regulatory task force for Google alone that pro-actively examines its practices and behaviors on a daily basis. #GoogleNonCompliance

Google don’t want SEOs to know they can win!😱 Google's ongoing antitrust trial has reached a significant point. The trial, led by the U.S. Department of Justice and 15 state attorneys general, aims to determine whether Google has abused its dominance in the digital advertising industry. The plaintiffs argue that Google's control over search results and ad placements has limited competition and harmed consumers.🤔 But most significantly, Google denied use of user data in deciding which website ranks. This is sending a clear indication to SEOs! That Google Is MAGICAL(Do you get my point?)😏 The trial will continue to unfold as the court analyzes the evidence and deliberates on potential remedies for the alleged antitrust violations. #Google #googleantitrust #seo #digitalmarketing #rankings #seomanipulation #userdata

A cornerstone of the Google search empire is its advertising business meaning marketers and adjacent professionals need to pay attention to proceedings, the outcome of which will profoundly impact their future practice. https://lnkd.in/eVBcSMZ4

"People don't use Google because they have to — they use it because they want to," Kent Walker, one of Google's top lawyers. Google "controls 90% of the search engine market" and they're up against a huge anti-trust lawsuit in the US. In fact, we have built and managed websites to come first in Google search results, and not necessarily for usability or the best product/service offered. 💡 Does this mean we've sacrificed innovation in favor of coming first in search results? I was listening to Pivot by Kara Swisher & Scott Galloway yesterday and they brought up "recipes" as an example of information being presented in a way that satisfies the algorithm, but is extremely difficult to use. To get to the recipe, the user often needs to scroll past blog posts and images to find the information they are actually looking for. If Google loses and the DOJ breaks up Google in favor of opening up the search engine market, this could change the way we use the internet and how we build websites. Do you think this would lead to increased innovation and a more competitive market, or would this negatively impact the way we work? #google #antitrust #searchengineoptimization

“Google is God.” What’s the allegation in the case? The government argues that Google has a monopoly of general search and search advertising, roughly 90-95% of the market. Google has maintained this monopoly, the government alleges, not by making a better product, but by locking down everywhere that consumers might be able to find a different search engine option, and making sure they only see Google. Judge Mehta will be this important because of Google’s outsized place in our society. The firm knows more about most people than their families, answering intimate questions from billions of us, every day, and controlling much of our communications to boot. It is a near-monopoly in search, with annual revenue of a little over $280 billion, and 15 products with more than 500 million users. We’ve perhaps never seen any corporate asset as powerful as Google search, with marketing professor Scott Galloway going so far as to say in 2017 that “Google is God.” And at trial, Google will use that dominance as its main narrative, essentially saying ‘Why are you picking on us? Our search engine is awesome! Everyone uses us!” The Antitrust Division will hopefully respond with “No, your search engine was awesome, but it’s increasingly ad-filled crap. You’re too powerful, you’re too lazy, and America needs some real competition.” Which narrative will win? Let’s dive in. https://lnkd.in/ddmYufXz