When questions come to mind, we want to quickly find the answers. "How old is Kanye West?" "How long do you boil an egg?" "How do I tie a tie?" When we ask others these questions on a day-to-day basis, what is the usual response if they don't know? "I don't know, just Google it." The first website many people go to for research, for questions, shopping, and ideas is Google. In fact, Google is used for nine out of ten online searches. But, has this become too much?
Many states, 48 of them to be exact, think so. The Attorney Generals of all states, including Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico, aside from California and Alabama, have begun an investigation of Google and if they have violated antitrust laws in becoming such a large corporation. Not only has Google become the main search engine, but their products and services have also begun to take over the market. Many of these investigations have focused on advertising. Google is being investigated on their paid advertising. Many of the first results shown are ads from companies and providers that have paid a lot of money to be one of the first shown when searched. The biggest concern in these investigations is if Google broke the law in the process of becoming such a powerhouse. It is a chain reaction for spending. Advertising for a higher search result means the advertisers pay more, which in turn leads to consumers paying more in the end. State Attorney Generals are not the only ones who think this is an issue. The Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission have begun to conduct investigations of Google and Facebook. One possible outcome they are looking for would be to split Google search into a separate entity, away from the bulk of the company.
It is not something I have ever thought about, but this is a serious issue. I think many people are the same way. They don't think twice about it. You need to know something or want to buy something, you type it into the Google search engine, and you're done. It is easy, it is convenient, and it is comfortable. But when you really think about it, I rarely ever click to the next page of search results. Meaning, I only see the results from advertisers are paying an extensive amount of money to show me their product of service I searched. If I buy from them, I am paying for the product or service, and helping them pay off however much they paid for their advertisement on Google's first page of results. I think that splitting Google's search engine to a separate company would be a good idea. It would lessen the monopolistic hold that Google has on the internet. The question is though, did Google break any laws in doing this, and is Google a true monopoly? And even if these accusations are true, can they just pay their way out of it?
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/google-antitrust-probe-48-u-s-states-launch-antitrust-investigation-of-google-dominance-in-search-ads-and-data/
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