U.S. sues Google for antitrust violations

WASHINGTON—The tech giant holds a monopoly over the search engine industry and acts as the “gateway to the internet,” U.S. Deputy Attorney General Jeff Rosen said. The Justice Department on Tuesday hit Google with its largest antitrust lawsuit since a 1998 case against Microsoft. Many Republicans and Democrats have accused Google of crushing competition through abusive practices. “In recent years, a small group of technology platforms have tightened their grip over commerce and communications in America,” President Donald Trump said last month.

How did Google respond? The corporation denied stifling competition and said successful, legal strategies have driven it to the top of the tech world. “People use Google because they choose to—not because they’re forced to or because they can’t find alternatives,” said a tweet posted Tuesday from the Google Public Policy account.

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archives, read my report in The Stew about why Google CEO Sundar Pichai and other Big Tech leaders had to testify before a House committee.