On October 20, 2020, the Department of Justice filed antitrust claims against Google, one of the biggest companies in the world. The DOJ alleged that Google “unlawfully maintain[s] monopolies through anticompetitive and exclusionary practices in the search and search advertising markets.” These practices include paying companies like Apple billions of dollars to make its search engine the default option on their devices, blocking competitors. The DOJ further points out that Google accounts for almost 90 percent of all online search queries in the United States. Google’s chief legal officer has responded to these claims by saying that people “use Google because they choose to, not because they’re forced to, or because they can’t find alternatives.” What part of the Sherman Act is the DOJ accusing Google of violating?

What do you think of the DOJ’s claims? Of Google’s response? How do you think this case will turn out, if it goes to trial at all? Is Google too big to be effectively taken on by the legal system?