Group Calls For Google Antitrust Probe

CWmike writes "Advocacy group Consumer Watchdog called on the DOJ to launch a broad antitrust investigation into Google's search and advertising practices and consider a wide array of penalties, including possibly breaking the company up (PDF). The watchdog, along with a mobile entrepreneur and two lawyers representing Google rivals, called for an investigation focusing on a number of issues, including Google's marriage of search results to advertising and its book search service. '...We think all remedies should be on the table, including, we think, the possible breakup of the Internet giant,' said John Simpson of Consumer Watchdog. Adam Kovacevich, senior manager for global communications and public affairs at Google, discounted the criticisms, saying Consumer Watchdog has been 'relentlessly negative' about Google. The group recently questioned the reasons why Google stopped censoring search results in China, and criticized Google's privacy Dashboard as inadequate, Kovacevich said."

Ok, but..

[Anonymous Coward]

I want the judge to rule that the plaintiffs not be allowed to use any Google technology in building their case. Soon they'll find that between Yahoo and Bing they could find enough information to argue their way out of a paper bag.

Re:The Peoples' Interest Should Come First

[Dog-Cow]

I agree. To that end, you should be killed now.

Re:Breaking up companies

[tsm_sf]

[...]does not mean others are not anti-comparative, and by others, I mean Apple.

vis a vis oranges, I'm guessing?

But they are just soooo good.....

[TiggertheMad]

And FWIW I don't see anything in the Microsoft Online Privacy Statement [microsoft.com] about giving users a way to control their data. Nor in the Yahoo Privacy Center [yahoo.com].

Hmmm, did you try searching with Google?

Re:Lawyers

[MrMista_B]

Until you need one.

Re:Breaking up companies

[catmistake]

which all web sites have been doing since the beginning of time.

Modern cosmology now suggests that the Planck epoch [wikipedia.org] may have inaugurated a period of unification, and that symmetry breaking then quickly led to the era of cosmic inflation, during which the universe greatly expanded in scale over a very short period of time, violently fueled by the pressure from the Big Bang itself, and tremendous amounts of web-generated ad revenue.

Why?

[lennier1]

There's nothing wrong with SkyNe...Google.