US talk on Google breakup gives EU political cover to get tough

The Big Tech argument that European regulation is protectionist, anti-American and damages innovative businesses is undermined if U.S. regulators are also considering a breakup to deal with antitrust issues in the U.S. market, said Thomas Höppner, a partner at law firm Hausfeld who represented web browser DuckDuckGo in the U.S. case against Google and acts for Axel Springer’s Idealo which is seeking competition damages from the search firm. Springer is POLITICO’s parent.

“If the [Justice Department] wants to impose that remedy for its own country and sees harm with its own businesses, local consumers, then obviously suggesting that Europe is just thinking of themselves is unfounded,” he said.

Google declined to comment beyond a blog post on the Justice Department move, described by Lee-Anne Holland, its regulatory affairs vice president, as “regulatory overreach in a fast-moving industry.”

“Hampering Google’s AI tools risks holding back American innovation at a critical moment,” she said. “It’s hard to think of a technology more important for America’s technological and economic leadership.

Google also referred to last year’s blog on the EU’s ad tech case where its global ads vice president, Dan Taylor, said the company opposed a divestment “as we don’t believe it is proportionate nor the right solution for our partners.” Integrated ad services are beneficial, he said, by efficiently connecting advertisers and publishers, in what he said was a market where customers use different platforms to sell and buy ads.

Aiming high

Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s top antitrust enforcer, is due to step down this year after racking up more than €8 billion in fines from the search giant. She even defeated the company in court. But her real legacy is the Digital Markets Act (DMA), a set of rules to squeeze Big Tech and act as problems emerge, a lesson the Commission has learned from investigations that failed to trigger big changes.