Google was back in court on Monday, as part of major hearings to determine if the technological giant, found guilty of abuse of dominant positionmust separate from its browser Chrome, while the race for artificial intelligence (IA) threatens to upset the online research.
“Today opens the last chapter of this historic trial,” Gail Slater, head of the antitrust department of the United States justice ministry said on Monday. “It is the future of the Internet that is at stake,” she added in her preliminary remarks.
“Are we going to give the Americans and allow innovation and competition to thrive online?” Or are we going to maintain the status quo which promotes monopolies of large technological companies? ”
“Radical” requirements
The Californian group was found guilty last summer of illegal practices last summer to establish and maintain its monopoly in online research by Amit Mehta. This Washington federal judge again questions the two parties before deciding on the sentence imposed on the company. This file is distinct from that in which the federal judge of Virginie Leonie Brinkema issued a decision on Thursday, concluding that Google was in a monopoly situation in the field of online advertising.
The American antitrust authorities want Google to separate from Chrome, the most used internet browser in the world, because it is a major access point to the search engine, thus undergoing the chances of potential competitors. They also ask the judge to prohibit the firm from signing agreements with Apple, Samsung and other smartphones manufacturers to install Google default on their devices.
Without Chrome, “Google would lose a huge source of consumer research data and their online behavior,” said Yory Wurmser, Emarketer analyst. “The objective of all these measures is not only to give consumers more choices, but also to provide competitors with the data they need to create such an effective search engine,” he adds for AFP.
“Excess of power”
Requirements that the company described as “radical” last November. “The approach of the Ministry of Justice would lead to an excess of unprecedented power on the part of the government which would harm consumers, developers and small American businesses – and would jeopardize the world’s economic and technological leadership in America,” said Kent Walker, president of the world affairs of Google.
For Gail Slater, appointed to the Ministry of Justice by Donald Trump, a dismantling is necessary to promote innovation at a time when competition is raging in the generative AI.
The advent of interfaces such as Chatgpt (OPENAI) and Gemini (Google) represents the greatest threat to Google’s domination in online research since its creation, because chatbots are now able to answer all kinds of users’ questions, including those they have so far to ask the Internet leader.
Prevent a new monopoly
The Mountain View group (Silicon Valley) is increasingly incorporating the generative AI to respond directly to Internet users in Google. The American prosecution wants to prevent the firm from transforming its current monopoly into another monopoly, while Openai and other start-ups, such as Perplexity AI tries to compete in online research boosted at AI.
If Donald Trump voluntarily marked a clear political break with Joe Biden, his government resumed, in this case, the requests already made by the previous administration at the end of last year.
“The Trump administration has given priority to the policies that support and advance artificial intelligence,” said Gail Slater. “But nothing will make artificial intelligence progress faster than an open and competitive market, free from guards and monopolies.”
Until the Supreme Court?
The bosses of large technological companies have been in charge of Donald Trump since his victory in November, hoping to attract his favors, especially as part of the numerous surveys and antitrust trials. But Mark Zuckerberg failed to avoid the trial of his Meta group which opened last week.
And the American competition authorities seem to decide to do battle. Gail Slate compared the “crushing” monopoly from Google to that of Standard Oil in oil and at & T in telecommunications in the 20th century.
Whatever the decision of judge Mehta, Google should appeal this decision, which will extend the process for years. The case could even go back to the Supreme Court.
