DOJ Concludes Antitrust Case with Generative AI at Center

US Justice Department Proposes Fixes for Google’s Monopoly in Search Market

The US Justice Department has proposed changes to address Google’s illegal monopoly in the online search market. An economist called by antitrust enforcers testified that the department’s proposed fixes are more likely to spur competition than the remedies offered by Google itself.

Key Points:

1. Economist Testimony:

   • Tasneem Chipty, an economics expert for the government, testified that the department’s remedies will have a better chance of restoring competition.
   • Google’s remedies will tend to preserve its monopoly.

2. Trial Overview:

   • The department’s final witness before the government rested its case.
   • Judge Amit Mehta ruled last year that Google illegally monopolized the search market and is overseeing a three-week trial in Washington to consider a package of changes proposed by antitrust enforcers.

3. Department’s Requests:

   • The department has asked Google to sell its popular Chrome web browser and share some of the data it collects to create its search results.
   • It has also asked Mehta to ban Google from paying for search engine defaults, which would also apply to Google’s AI products, including Gemini.

4. Antitrust Analyst’s View:

   • Jennifer Rie, THE PRIME NEWS NETWORKIntelligence’s antitrust analyst, said it’s unlikely that Mehta will ultimately order a sale of Chrome, but the Justice Department has done a good job demonstrating why a divestiture is needed and how it could be accomplished.

5. Trial Progress:

   • The government’s presentation of testimony and evidence marked the halfway point in the remedies trial.
   • Google began making its case that the department’s proposals are too extreme.
   • Alphabet Inc. CEO Sundar Pichai and Google’s search boss, Liz Reid, are expected to testify in the coming days.

6. AI and Generative AI:

   • The trial has focused on the burgeoning field of generative AI, which witnesses and the Justice Department say could become a new access point to the web.
   • AI chatbots are seen as an existential threat to traditional search engines, as they can address users’ questions directly with AI-drafted responses, replacing the need for long lists of search results.

7. High-Profile Testimonies:

   • The Justice Department called a slew of high-profile tech executives to the stand to describe Googles harmful business practices and how the proposed remedies would break up the monopoly.
   • OpenAI’s Nick Turley, Perplexity’s Dmitry Shevelenko, and DuckDuckGo’s Gabriel Weinberg testified about Googles harmful business practices and potential remedies.

8. Market Impact:

   • Three company representatives from OpenAI, Perplexity, and even Yahoo expressed interest in buying Chrome if Google were forced to divest it.
   • DuckDuckGo has given an eye-popping sale estimate of upwards of $50 billion for Chrome based on its vast user base.

9. Specific Case:

   • Perplexity’s Dmitry Shevelenko testified that Google’s contract with Lenovo Group Ltd.’s Motorola blocked the smartphone maker from setting Perplexity AI as the default assistant on its new devices.
10. Risk of Exploitation:
    • Chipty, the department’s economics expert, also testified on the risk that Google could take advantage of generative AI’s popularity to distribute its search services and get around potential court-ordered remedies.

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Reference : https://www.livemint.com/companies/news/doj-google-antitrust-case-wraps-with-generative-ai-in-spotlight-11745964456673.html