The following statement is attributed to Gary Shapiro, president and CEO, Consumer Technology Association (CTA)®, on the announcement by the Department of Justice to file an antitrust suit against Google.
“While we familiarize ourselves with details of the lawsuit, we are concerned that the Department of Justice antitrust action against Google is unfair as it distorts existing antitrust standards and seeks to create new laws and apply them retroactively against one of America's greatest companies. Google is a crown-jewel American global leader whose innovation should be lauded, not punished. Its advancements and contributions have made the world better and its free and low-cost services – from search to email to mapping to its mobile operating system – improve the lives of millions of consumers every day.
“Google users love it; it is constantly ranked among America’s most beloved companies. Customers use Google not because they are forced to, but because they are delighted by its products. They do not want our government to break up Google’s products or harm the services they use every day. Google is also one of America’s leaders in research and development spending, because the tech market is dynamic, barriers to entry are low and competition is a click away.
“Google is a strong and important contributor to the American economy. It employs 75,000 Americans directly, and its Android app ecosystem helped create 1.7 million American jobs over the last year. More, its search and advertising tools provide $385 billion of economic activity for more than 1.4 million American businesses over the last year.
“Government action to weaken American innovators like Google will not help the U.S. maintain its status as a global tech leader. Instead, such steps will cede market share to Chinese competitors, handing China a massive gift in its efforts to catch and surpass U.S. tech companies.
“In our system, competition laws must protect consumers, not competitors. We strongly urge the Department of Justice to adhere to the consumer welfare standard, which focuses on customers or users. Unlike European systems that assume big is bad and success is suspect, America's consumer-focused standard and light-touch regulation has led to unprecedented global innovation leadership. We encourage the Department of Justice to stand down, so Google can return to its key business of innovating, serving consumers and supporting American's entrepreneurs.”