In order to make the Internet more “fair and balanced,” the FTC is allegedly initiating an anti-trust investigation against Google over fears that the company holds too much power online.
Instead of punishing rivals for copying Google’s search results, the Feds are punishing Google for dominating the web due to launching superior features.
Ignoring the fact that Google already has a formidable foe by the name of Bing! (who last I checked assimilated Yahoo! search), this whole anti-trust case seems silly as anyone can easily switch away from Google’s services at will.
Unlike Google, rivals like Bing! can tap into Facebook’s social graph, an asset Google can only dream about for the moment (which is probably why the company launched their plus 1 service).
If the FTC does play the monopoly card (which would do more to hurt Google’s stock than Google’s reputation), Google will probably be able to defeat the lawsuit in court as the Feds were unable to break apart Microsoft over a decade ago.
While the FTC’s job is to help ensure that our capitalistic society remains competitive, it probably would be wiser for them to spend resources ensuring consumer freedom within the wireless industry instead.
Originally posted on April 5, 2011 @ 2:56 pm