What US lawsuits and investigations is Big Tech facing?

Below is the status of US government lawsuits and investigations into Big Tech.

Two lawsuits against Facebook

The first case involves the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) suing Facebook last December. Accordingly, the lawsuit targets Facebook’s two major acquisitions, Instagram and WhatsApp, and forces this technology giant to divest from these two applications.

How is Big Tech fighting US lawsuits and investigations?

However, the FTC failed when District of Columbia Judge James Boasberg ruled that there was no evidence that Facebook had monopoly power in the social networking market. He added that the FTC could file a new complaint by July 29.

The second Facebook-related lawsuit also fell through when the Court dismissed the lawsuit brought by 46 states regarding those acquisitions on the grounds that it had been a long time since the events in question.

Four lawsuits against Google

The first case involves the US Justice Department suing Google last October, accusing the $1 trillion company of illegally using its market power to make it difficult for rivals. The trial is expected to be opened on September 12, 2023.

A second lawsuit brought by 38 US states and territories accuses Google of abusing its market power so that its search engine dominates in the automotive, TV and speaker-like markets.

The third lawsuit, initiated by the state of Texas with support from other states, filed a separate lawsuit against Google, alleging that the company violated antitrust laws in the way it operates its online advertising business. mine.

The final lawsuit was brought by dozens of state Attorneys General on 7/7, under which these Attorney Generals accused Google of buying out competitors and using restrictive contracts to illegally maintains a monopoly on its app store on Android phones.

US Department of Justice investigates Apple

This investigation was revealed in June 2019, apparently focusing only on Apple’s app store (Apple Store). Some app developers have accused Apple of launching new products that are very similar to existing apps created and sold by other developers in the Apple Store, then trying to get rid of older apps. from the Apple Store because they compete with new Apple products. However, Apple thinks that it only seeks to have the highest quality apps in its app store.

US Justice Department Investigates Facebook and Amazon

In July 2019, the US Department of Justice said it was expanding its Big Tech-related investigations to include search engines, social media and some online retail services. This is referring to Facebook and Amazon.

FTC investigates Amazon

In its investigation into Amazon, the FTC is likely looking into the inherent conflicts of interest of Amazon competing with smaller sellers on its marketplace platform, including allegations that it used information information from sellers on its platform to decide which products they will recommend.

According to Reuters