What does splitting up Google actually mean? Forceable divestment of image search? Forced to spin off Maps?
Google Shopping, for instance, is a search system for product information. Is it a separate "website?" If so, why?
The Bells were broken up because another telco can't compete in a market where lines are already physically run. This is not the case for search.
Edited to add: Perhaps the main problem is that Google has access to waaaaay more data than anybody else. They know what everyone is searching for. They know which search results get clicked on. The data that you would need to have any hope of building a better search engine is all owned by Google, so there is no real hope of competing with them.
If you mean "relatively tiny" in terms of traffic, how do you know that's not just brand recognition at this point---Google still thought of as a "search engine company," MS as "an OS and business software company dabbling in search?"
TLDR; cap number of employees for big tech
Wouldn't this be possible across tech teams as well? To meet some cap rules?
That being said, I havent completely thought through this strategy - it might require additional regulation to work or there might be a better approach altogether.
Other than the exclusivity deal that they would have with Google and all the non-compete and NDAs they would have to sign.
So you will tell Ford to shut down assembly lines to meet some arbitrary cap? That’s going to make manufactured goods either skyrocket in cost or, result in companies like Google or Ford just moving outside the US.
And what’s the benefit to the consumer of a broken up Google? Will I get a better search engine? Is the current one most people use somehow broken? Or is this all just philosophical? Meaning.. is there a startup right now that can’t compete because of Google? Is Google actually preventing them from building infrastructure, hiring people or doing really whatever they want?
Remember when Apple was born? HP and IBM were juggernauts. But a new innovative company eventually dethroned the both of those companies. Actually Apple dethroned every single company since Apple is the most valuable company on the planet. And it started in a garage going against the ubiquitous Big Blue.
We don’t need to break up anyone — we need people reading this to start building some real shit. With all the effort put into crypto currencies and other such trendy nonsense — how many people have tried to build and market better search? How many people are actually trying to solve hard problems that people care about? Honesty, nobody in the real world cares about Bitcoin. Google has a “monopoly” because it seems like nobody is trying to make something better!
If Google search were actually bad but we were still forced to use it, that would be an abuse of a monopoly position. However, Google actually works pretty good most of the time. It literally works better than any other search engine I’ve tried. So, for that reason, we break up the company? That’s ridiculous. How about putting that effort into making something better? Breaking up the leader just because they are literally too popular? That’s crazy.
Didn’t some ridiculous juicer raise tens of millions of dollars? Didn’t Mattermark waste $17 million or so just to gather startup data? Is there nobody actually trying to compete with Google?
My point is that the problem isn’t Google; it’s the attitude that Google can’t be beaten. ANY company can be beaten — it doesnt take the government, it takes motivated people.
Search is at the core of the internet. It is too important to be allowed in the hands of a single player.