Weekly Roundup: The Anti-trust Suits
Google looses, the EU folds, and Facebook is running out of chips
This week marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of digital market governance, with three developments signaling a profound shift in the regulatory landscape for technology platforms.
Google's Historic Antitrust Losses Stack Up
Within a span of just eight months, Google has been declared an illegal monopolist by two separate federal courts. Thursday's ruling that Google illegally monopolized publisher ad servers and ad exchanges represents the company's third major antitrust defeat since 2023. What makes this moment truly historic isn't merely the speed of these consecutive losses, but their potential to fundamentally restructure digital markets.
The government's victories against Google signal courts are finally catching up to the realities of anticompetitive behavior in digital markets. As Nancy Rose, an MIT economist quoted in the NYTimes article, notes, these cases represent "important affirmations of the ability of the government to pursue major monopolization cases and prevail." As the Meta trial begins, we’ll see if the government can keep its winning streak alive.
EU's Strategic Regulatory Pause
Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, the European Union demonstrated how tech regulation has become inexorably entangled with broader geopolitical considerations. The European Commission abruptly delayed planned penalties against Apple and Meta, just as trade talks with the Trump administration gained momentum.
The timing speaks volumes – the decision to postpone came shortly before EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič's Washington meetings coinciding with Trump's 90-day tariff pause announcement. This tactical regulatory restraint underscores the delicate balancing act facing global regulators: asserting digital sovereignty while navigating increasingly complex trade relationships.
The delayed penalties targeting alleged Digital Markets Act violations remain pending, with sources indicating they will eventually proceed. However, this pause reveals how tech regulation has evolved from a primarily technocratic exercise to a central chess piece in international trade strategy.
In other news
WIPO Treaty on Genetic Resources Advances: The USPTO will hold a public hearing on the WIPO Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge. This development represents a significant step toward establishing international standards addressing biopiracy and traditional knowledge protection in the digital age.
NASA Advances Drone Air Traffic Management: MIT Technology Review reports on NASA's groundbreaking work to develop comprehensive air traffic control systems for drones, addressing a critical infrastructure gap as commercial drone applications continue to proliferate.
U.S. Eliminates Foreign Disinformation Office: The office responsible for countering foreign disinformation is being dismantled, raising profound questions about America's information resilience capabilities at a critical juncture.
AI Transforms Civic Engagement: A small U.S. city is pioneering the use of AI to gauge resident preferences, potentially revolutionizing how local governments prioritize resources and address constituent concerns.
Federal Critical Mineral Processing Initiative: A new proposal aims to secure U.S. mineral independence from China, addressing a key vulnerability in America's industrial and defense supply chains with strategic regulatory interventions.
