Posted on 05/17/2009 6:45:26 PM PDT by reaganaut1
For decades, the nation’s biggest antitrust cases have centered on technology companies. And they have all been efforts by the government to deal with powerful companies with far-reaching influence, like AT&T, the telephone monopoly; I.B.M., the mainframe computer giant; and Microsoft, the powerhouse of personal computer software.
Last week, the Obama administration declared a sharp break with the Bush years, vowing to toughen antitrust enforcement, especially for dominant companies. The approach is closer to that of the European Union, where regulators last week fined Intel $1.45 billion for abusing its power in the chip market.
In this new climate, the stakes appear to be highest for Google, the rising power of the Internet economy.
The new antitrust leadership, legal experts say, is likely to scrutinize networks — technology platforms that become so dominant that everyone feels the need to plug into them. The advantages to the companies that control such networks snowball as they attract more users, advertisers or software developers.
Internet search and search advertising, like personal computer operating software, is one example, said Herbert Hovenkamp, an antitrust expert at the University of Iowa law school. “Google is a dominant network, as is Microsoft,” Mr. Hovenkamp said. “Networks become competitive only if everyone has the same chance.”
Google’s corporate behavior is already being closely monitored. Last year, Google abandoned a planned search advertising partnership with Yahoo after the Justice Department said it intended to file suit to block the agreement on antitrust grounds. Google has 64 percent of the Web search market in America, while Yahoo has 21 percent and Microsoft 8 percent, according to comScore, a research firm.
In recent weeks, antitrust officials have opened two inquiries.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Sorry, but their politics should not even come in to discussion on this issue. We’re supposed to be beyond that type of behavior.
How ironic. I guess Libs eat their own for lunch when it is fashionable.
They contribute heavily to the party out to destroy America’s free enterprise system, and I’m not supposed to mention it? Why?
As I said, I still oppose fabricated antitrust actions against Google, but schadenfreude is the only pleasure I get from the political news, and I won’t give it up (until there is a conservative resurgence).
Get in or get out.
Monopolies and merger laws should go after Zero.
Where was the antitrust when Funny Mae and Freaky Mac were feeding the corrupt senators and congressmen to get away with monumental scam??????????????
quasi governmental entities.
Fine, to big to fail needs to be stopped, there are whole bunch of bail out firms that need to be downsized.
Another way of Intimidation for BHO ?
Google could turn on the Marxist dictator....Sorta like RUSH on steroids and a much Bigger audience.
BHO NEEDS TO SURVIVE THE CHRYSLER AND GM LAYOFF NUMBERS FIRST......the unemployment numbers are going to be UGLY !
What parallel can be drawn to Microsoft? Microsoft was accused of plugging its own browser too much, and was pressured into shipping a version of its OS (that nobody wants) having the browser hidden. Is Google going to be forced into becoming a portal page for all search engines on the planet?
The best thing Google could do for us is to support a new lefty party. Call it the Google party. We’d be happy to contribute to it, wink wink.
Meanwhile, banks and Wall Street firms are consolidating left and right.
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