With the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) antitrust lawsuit against Google still pending, it appears as though some state attorneys general may be taking matters into their own hands.
Several states are now planning to open their own antitrust investigations into Google. The states of Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska and New York are reportedly planning to release a joint statement explaining that they may sign on to the DOJ’s antitrust lawsuit at a later date, several sources told The Washington Post.
“The states leading the probe into Google include Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee and Utah. It is not clear how many of their attorneys general intend to sign the expected, forthcoming statement, which sources cautioned could still change,” said The Post. None of the state attorneys general commented on the investigations.
“The timing may serve to grant the states additional legal and political flexibility,” the sources reportedly said. The Post went on to say “Democrats and Republicans nationwide have come to see the company as a threat to corporate rivals and consumers alike, and they have increasingly turned to federal antitrust law as a way to take action against claims of anti-competitive behavior that Google strongly denies.”
For the past year, the DOJ has been investigating Google and planning to bring an antitrust lawsuit against the company. Last month, the DOJ briefed state attorneys general on the matter. Earlier this month, the House Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law released its report, which proposed solutions for breaking up Big Tech companies like Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon.
Although nothing is certain about an antitrust case against Google at this point, the tech empire may soon face the music.
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