TechnologyJustice Department Opens Antitrust Review of Big Tech Companies

The Justice Department is opening a broad antitrust review into whether dominant technology firms are unlawfully stifling competition, according to department officials. Attorney General William Barr has asked how some Big Tech companies took shape ‘under the nose of the antitrust enforcers.’

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is exploring whether to open a case against Google for potential antitrust violations, putting renewed scrutiny on the company amid a growing chorus of criticism about the power of Big Tech , three people with knowledge of the deliberations said Friday.

The Justice Department will oversee antitrust complaints about Apple while the Federal Trade Commission will take on Facebook. The question of whether tech companies violate antitrust laws has long been the subject of academic debates and industry griping.

The U.S. Department of Justice is set to open open a broad antitrust review of big tech companies , separate from probes that were reportedly already underway, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal published Tuesday. The DOJ is reportedly launching the review based on "new

In addition, the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission, the two top antitrust agencies, recently divided antitrust Numerous state attorneys general are also preparing inquiries into the biggest tech companies . Many of them are meeting with F.T.C. officials on Wednesday to

WASHINGTON — Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ meeting with more than a dozen state officials focused largely on the privacy, data collection, and antitrust issues of tech companies , despite earlier indications that the gathering would address whether platforms were stifling political voices.

The talks will also address concerns over anti -competitiveness among big tech companies . But now, Makan Delrahim, the Justice Department 's antitrust division head, has put those " Just because somebody is big does not mean they have violated the laws," he said at a conference on Thursday.

Makan Delrahim, head of the Justice Department ’s antitrust division, said the debate over whether big tech companies have violated laws is important but cautioned that antitrust enforcers need “credible evidence”

Justice Department preparing potential antitrust investigation of Google. Move would put tech giant WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has taken early steps toward opening a federal Google and other big tech companies “have too much power and they’re using that power to hurt

The government might finally take steps to break up companies such as Facebook and Google. Ron Knox is an editor at Global Competition Review , an antitrust journal and news service. After years of operating largely free of federal regulation, our tech overlords are now firmly in the regulatory spotlight.