Google’s money-printing machine can be easily dismantled

TARGETED advertising is the business model that created much of the modern Internet, and no company has benefited more than Google. Last Thursday (Apr 17), a district court judge handed down a ruling that threatens to dismantle part of that money-printing machine. Finally, there’s a Big Tech antitrust case with an obvious and effective remedy. 

Of course, this decision will set off a costly and complex round of appeals that could take years and may walk back some of Judge Leonie Brinkema’s conclusions. Still, as it stands now, it’s a significant blow to Google’s business, one that comes on the heels of losing another blockbuster antitrust trial last year. 

In that first case, the Justice Department convinced a judge that the Alphabet unit unfairly showered billions of dollars on companies such as Apple to remain the default search engine on browsers and other important parts of digital real estate.