Google faces U.S. antitrust investigation

Industry Contributor 3 Jun 2019 - 2 min read

Google faces U.S. antitrust investigation

By Paul McIntyre - Executive Editor

Market Voice 3 min read

Kicking bigger growth goals: Foxtel & Kayo Sports breaks AFL streaming record as power brands reap returns – big hits incoming

By Martin Medcraf - Sport Sales and Brand Partnerships Director, Foxtel Media | Partner Content

Sports streaming audiences are booming – with this month marking the highest ever streamed AFL round and Kayo’s most streamed sports weekend of all time.

Market Voice 3 min read

Sponsorships: The four things you need to maximise ROI and quantify sales – and why missing two of them could get it cancelled

By Jonathan Fox - Director of Client Services, Mutinex | Partner Content

Sponsorships can either power growth or turn out an expensive mistake. Mutinex MMM data for major Australian brand sponsorships shows dramatic ROI swings – from $8 for every $1 invested, to losses of fifty cents on the dollar.

Tags: Google, antitrust, Department of Justice, advertising, search, Amazon, Trump

The U.S Justice Department is taking steps to probe Google’s business practices to determine whether it has breached antitrust law (Reuters)

Key points

Source says investigation would focus on whether Google has given preference to its own services in search results
Justice Department could be more potent than Federal Trade Commission, which conducted Google inquiry in 2013, though DoJ failed in recent bid to stop AT&T-Time Warner deal
Google has been fined billions in Europe over search and advertising practices

An investigation will take years to play out. But marketers that have intertwined their business with Google – i.e. most people - should take note. The political appetite and rhetoric on tech platforms is reaching fever pitch in the U.S. Some of those seeking nomination to run against Trump in next year’s election are making ‘break up big tech’ a key plank of their campaigns. That means the pressure will keep building, and Trump’s Justice Department will feel that pressure. Could Google, or Alphabet get broken up? Recent history suggests not. But there’s a case to be made. If it happened, and the market continues to align infrastructure and reliance on Google’s stack, there’ll be some serious unwinding required ahead.