Skip to main content

FTC investigation into Google getting more focused

Google-FTC-antitrust-probe
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Federal Trade Commission has increased its scrutiny of Google, delving into specific aspects of the company’s business — namely Android and search services — as part of an ongoing antitrust investigation.

Recommended Videos

The FTC’s lawyers want to know whether or not Google has strong-armed Android-based smartphone manufacturers into exclusively using its products. Additionally, regulators are investigating if Google is biased in its placement of Google services within Google search results. Finally, the FTC is following up on claims that Google swipes info curated by its competitors (restaurant reviews, map data, etc.) to use in its own services, while still bumping competitors down in search results.

The FTC first served Google with a whole gaggle of subpoenas in June. Google initially claimed that the subpoenas carved such a broad swath in the company’s business that it didn’t ever really know what the FTC was looking for. But Android aside, it’s become readily apparent that the FTC is aiming its investigatory guns right at Google’s heart: its search business.

In one instance given by the Wall Street Journal, the FTC has discussed Google’s review aggregation with Yelp and TripAdvisor. Google’s Places service, which offers business listings and customer reviews, includes reviews from the aforementioned sites and others. Google claims it was aggregating searchable content, while those sites allege what Google did was theft. In a possible preemptive move, Google recently removed the clips of aggregated reviews it had previously used in Places.

The FTC is only in its earliest stages as investigators have to learn the business first before they can start questioning further and making judgements. However, with the European Commission also investigating Google, not to mention the ongoing Android patent war, Google looks to be embroiled in legal issues for the foreseeable future.

Topics
Derek Mead
Former Digital Trends Contributor
How to change margins in Google Docs
Laptop Working from Home

When you create a document in Google Docs, you may need to adjust the space between the edge of the page and the content -- the margins. For instance, many professors have requirements for the margin sizes you must use for college papers.

You can easily change the left, right, top, and bottom margins in Google Docs and have a few different ways to do it.

Read more
What is Microsoft Teams? How to use the collaboration app
A close-up of someone using Microsoft Teams on a laptop for a videoconference.

Online team collaboration is the new norm as companies spread their workforce across the globe. Gone are the days of primarily relying on group emails, as teams can now work together in real time using an instant chat-style interface, no matter where they are.

Using Microsoft Teams affords video conferencing, real-time discussions, document sharing and editing, and more for companies and corporations. It's one of many collaboration tools designed to bring company workers together in an online space. It’s not designed for communicating with family and friends, but for colleagues and clients.

Read more
Microsoft Word vs. Google Docs
A person using a laptop that displays various Microsoft Office apps.

For the last few decades, Microsoft Word has been the de facto standard for word processors across the working world. That's finally starting to shift, and it looks like one of Google's productivity apps is the heir apparent. The company's Google Docs solution (or to be specific, the integrated word processor) is cross-platform and interoperable, automatically syncs, is easily shareable, and perhaps best of all, is free.

However, using Google Docs proves it still has a long way to go before it can match all of Word's features -- Microsoft has been developing its word processor for over 30 years, after all, and millions still use Microsoft Word. Will Google Docs' low barrier to entry and cross-platform functionality win out? Let's break down each word processor in terms of features and capabilities to help you determine which is best for your needs.
How does each word processing program compare?
To put it lightly, Microsoft Word has an incredible advantage over Google Docs in terms of raw technical capability. From relatively humble beginnings in the 1980s, Microsoft has added new tools and options in each successive version. Most of the essential editing tools are available in Google Docs, but users who are used to Word will find it limited.

Read more