On April 27th, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis commented on the issue of Google’s market dominance by saying that the tech giant should be broken up. During a roundtable with conservative leaders, Governor DeSantis said that Google has operated in “illegal, anti-competitive practices” and have created “a monopoly market”.
In response to the Governor’s comments, Google argued that it is a leader in innovation. It also noted that people visit Google for the most basic web searches, and relied on third-party apps and websites for specialized services. However, the company declined to comment specifically on DeSantis’ comments about breaking up the company.
DeSantis is not alone in his view that Google should be broken up. For example, United States Senator Josh Hawley from Missouri has also called for breaking up Google. Hawley believes that Google has become so large and powerful that it has become too difficult for smaller companies to compete with it and is creating an unfavorable environment for smaller companies.
DeSantis’ comments come as Google is facing serious antitrust investigations and litigation involving various entities such as the Department of Justice and several state attorneys general. These investigations and lawsuits could lead to a break up of Google and serious consequences for the company.
The US government has taken a harder stance on technology monopolies in recent years. Google is not the only tech giant to be under investigation as Facebook, Apple and Amazon have all been accused of anti-competitive practices in the past.
Governor DeSantis’ comments are a clear sign that he is willing to take action against Google and to investigate the company’s practices, which could potentially lead to a break up of the company. If broken up, Google would have less control over what is seen on the web and this could potentially lead to a more competitive landscape.
