Google likely to face antitrust investigation by the US Department of Justice

Antitrust examination into Google won't be limited to its search or online advertising business practices

The US Department of Justice (DoJ) is preparing an antitrust investigation into Google to work out whether it has broken US antitrust laws.

That's according to a report published in the Wall Street Journal, which added that the DoJ recently won jurisdiction from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for an investigation into Google. It is now closely reviewing the company's practices related not just to its search business, but also the full range of parent company Alphabet's software and services empire.

The news comes amid increasing discussion among US politicians about whether it might be better to break up large and powerful tech firms.

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In the US, the FTC shares responsibility with the DoJ for antitrust enforcemen, and both agencies must liaise before either of them starts an investigation into any company.

In 2011, the FTC brought a case against Google related to the insertion of tracking cookies into Apple's Safari browser, which was done by taking advantage of a security flaw. The case concluded a year later with $22.5 million civil penalty for Google.

Later, the FTC started a probe against the search giant for possible antitrust violations but closed it in 2013 without taking any action against Google.

Google's rivals have repeatedly demanded action from US antitrust regulators to stop what they claim are the company's anti-competitive practices, although with little success so far.

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It has been a different matter in the EU, though, with Google paying more in fines in its last financial year than it did in tax. Most recently, the EU imposed a fine on Google for non-compete contracts that it demanded customers sign for using its AdSense product. The EU also asked the company to make changes to its business model.

Google has also come under intense political pressure recently in the US. President Donald Trump has accused Google of political bias in its search results. Earlier this year, Trump posted tweets accusing a number of internet companies, including YouTube, of favouring Democratic opponents over Republicans.

However, Google won't find much shelter from Trump's opponents. Senator Elizabeth Warren, who is running for the Democractic Party presidential nomination for 2020, has repeatedly demanded the break-up of major tech firms like Google.

In March, she said that she wants regulators who could undo "anti-competitive mergers", such as Google's with DoubleClick and Nest, to be empowered to take action. She also has Facebook and Amazon in her sights as well.

Any action against Google will be reminiscent of the US antitrust case against Microsoft, which started in 1998 and lasted for years. That went all the way to the Supreme Court.

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