Google to Government: Deeply Flawed Are Your Arguments
October 21, 2020
Google publishes The Keyword, a blog about public policy. The blog presented an essay called “A Deeply Flawed Lawsuit That Would Do Nothing to Help Consumers.” The argument is interesting. The important section is meta; specifically, “The bigger point the lawsuit misses.” The article asserts:
The bigger point is that people don’t use Google because they have to, they use it because they choose to.
One click away from another services, right? People are smart enough to use a service like Swisscows.com, Qwant.com, or Izito.com.
Another key point:
It’s also trivially easy to change your search engine in our browser, Chrome.
Those who use mobile phones can navigate the menus and options in Chrome on a mobile phone or in a desktop computer.
The essay includes “Next Steps.” In this conclusion to the essay, the article states what appears to be the obvious:
We understand that with our success comes scrutiny, but we stand by our position. American antitrust law is designed to promote innovation and help consumers, not tilt the playing field in favor of particular competitors or make it harder for people to get the services they want.
My summary of the essay is: “If you are Googley, you get it. If not, you are not Googley, and there is not much we can do to assist you.”
What happens when governments asleep at the switch for 20 years are told the Google facts about Google? Not much. Habits like a soft bed are easy to get into and hard to get out of.
Ask someone addicted to an opioid, alcohol, shaping information flows, or just doing whatever one wants.
Stephen E Arnold, October 21, 2020
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