This week, technology giants Meta Platforms Inc. and Alphabet Inc. suffered heavy blows in antitrust trials in different courts in the same federal court building. The situation reflects a rare consensus between the two parties to regulate these companies, and the relevant actions span the Trump and Biden administrations.
In a trial in Washington, a federal judge is considering the disposal plan of the Google search monopoly case. During the trial, Google executives unexpectedly admitted that Google paid Samsung "huge fees" to pre-install its Gemini AI application even though the court had twice ruled that such transactions were illegal. This disclosure may provide a strong basis for the government to formulate punitive measures, thereby weakening Google's dominant position in the field of artificial intelligence.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is trying to split Meta. In a courtroom two floors below, the commission asked Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom to explain whether the app would have flourished if it had not been acquired by Meta.
It’s no small feat in today’s partisan political climate: The legal proceedings have remained consistent from Trump’s first term to Biden’s and then to Trump’s new term. The two parties agree that the internet landscape and the business models of its leading companies are in urgent need of drastic changes. Despite serious disagreements on many other issues, and even on the fundamental reasons for regulating these companies, the two parties have made progress on antitrust actions.
“It’s really remarkable that these actions have continued to move forward,” said Lina Khan, the FTC chairwoman during the Biden era, who played a key role in these tech antitrust cases. But she also pointed out that if Trump disbands relevant government agencies or resists court decisions, the bipartisan alliance could collapse at any time. Trump’s antitrust adviser Mike Davis said: “It’s worth affirming that Biden has continued the actions started by Trump, and now Trump will complete the work in his second term.”
In August last year, the court ruled that Google illegally monopolized the online search market. Now Google is in court again, and the judge will decide what changes need to be made to its business. The government advocates forcing Google to divest its popular Chrome browser. Also in Washington, Meta's trial with the FTC entered its second week. If it loses the case, Instagram and WhatsApp will be forced to split up, and Meta's social media empire may fall apart.
Not long ago, Google suffered another heavy blow when a federal judge ruled that its control over Internet advertising technology violated antitrust laws. Both parties cheered and celebrated. Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren posted on the X platform: "The fight to split up the tech giant has ushered in a major victory!" Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri also praised: "Great news!" He believes that if the government successfully splits up Google, it may reshape the entire Internet landscape.