6 ways Google’s antitrust ruling could change the internet | Texarkana Gazette

A federal judge said Monday that Google violated antitrust laws to kneecap Internet search in ways that bolstered the company’s dominance.

It was the second time in the last year that a judge or court declared that Google is an illegal monopoly. The last time was about how Google runs its Android app store.

The next steps, which include proposing legal reforms to undo Google’s behavior, are about imagining an alternative future in which Google is not Google as we know it.

What new ideas could thrive, what new companies could get off the ground or what products would be cheaper if Google were to be handcuffed to change its search engine?

We have the Internet that we have, and it is difficult to think of something different or if you would like it more. I have listed six changes that could result from the two monopoly rulings on Google.

This is educated guesswork. It is also possible that nothing much will change. That’s what happened after Google was found to have violated European Union anti-monopoly laws.

The US government must now propose to Judge Amit Mehta ways to block Google’s actions to correct its governance. It can take years to resolve. In the case of the app store, a judge will soon decide how Google must change its illegal status.

Google said it plans to appeal Monday’s decision and is “focused on making products that people find useful and easy to use.” A Google spokesperson declined to comment on speculation about what happens next.

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1. Imagine a Google-quality search engine without ads – or for kids, nerds or Lego fans.

It is possible that Google could be forced to let other companies access its search technology or its valuable data to create search engines with Google’s technical chops – but without Google.

You can imagine the company taking Google’s secret sauce and tweaking it to make a search engine that’s kid-friendly, suggests Matt Stoller, director of research at the American Economic Liberties Project and a frequent critic of the power of Big Tech. Another company may prioritize websites that target your privacy. One can display the search in a preview way.

“We’re going to see the creativity of the human race come out,” Stoller said.

Letting a thousand Google-style search engines fire is probably the idea that Google’s critics have embraced the most. But even if the government asks for it and Mehta agrees, it may not work.

There have been other search engines, including Microsoft’s Bing, DuckDuckGo and privacy-focused Neeva, which was started by a former Google executive. DuckDuckGo and Bing are nowhere near as popular or profitable as Google. Neeva was underutilized and closed this year.

The question we can see being tested is: If Google is forced to share the search power that the judge says it obtained illegally, can competitors create more attractive search engines?

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2. Could Apple make a search engine?

Google pays Apple billions of dollars a year – $20 billion by 2022 – to make Google the default web search engine in Apple’s Safari browser.

That arrangement gives Google access to valuable research from Apple device owners, and guarantees Apple more revenue.

Megan Gray, an antitrust expert with GrayMatters Law & Policy and a vocal critic of Google, said the judge could change or end Google’s deals with Apple and companies that put Google search front and center on phones. of Android and web browsers.

The worst case scenario is that you’ll need to choose whether you’re using Google on your iPhone or something else. But technology experts and stock analysts have also speculated for years that Apple could build its own search engine. It would be like when Apple launched Apple Maps as an alternative to Google Maps.

Apple did not respond to a request for comment.

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3. Can prices be lowered for products that advertise close to what you are looking for (ie more products)?

Mehta said Google has the power to charge artificially high prices for text ads you might see when you search for terms like “auto insurance quotes Minneapolis.”

In theory, if other types of research become popular, there will be more competition and lower prices for insurance providers and other companies trying to get your attention when you want.

Also, in theory, if they pay less for advertising, car insurance and other products you buy can be cheaper.

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4. The company can split into Baby Googles.

This seems unlikely, but the government could ask a judge to break up Google to fix its illegal monopoly power. In this case, the Chrome browser may be its own company and so is Google search and Android, for example.

Stoller said that when companies like Standard Oil and AT&T were forced to break up in previous illegal rulings, the companies were freed to come up with smart ideas that didn’t have a chance in the business. growth.

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5. What if Google wasn’t allowed to know much about you?

Jason Kint of Digital Content Next, an industry group that includes online news organizations, said one idea is that many Google products will no longer be allowed to collect information about what you do. In fact, it can be a divorce of Google products without destroying the company.

That would mean, for example, that whatever you do on your Android phone or the websites you visit using Chrome won’t be included in one big Google database about your activities and interests.

If Google had less data, it would be good for your privacy, and it could also help other companies, including news organizations that don’t have as much Google data.

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6. You can download almost anything from the Google Android app store.

The judge in another Google monopoly case appears to be in favor of loosening the company’s absolute control over apps.

That would mean you’ll be able to buy Amazon Kindle e-books from its Android app, which you can’t do now. (Amazon founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post.) Games like “Fortnite” that weren’t available on Android phones may be available again.

In a recent court case, the judge also seemed open to reducing the fees that Google collects when you buy digital subscriptions to things like Disney Plus, Match.com or X from Android apps. That can translate into lower prices for your in-app purchases.