Christian Kunz’s Post

Google’s search monopoly faces a major legal challenge, raising questions about the future of online search. A US judge has ruled that Google has been illegally maintaining its monopoly over the internet search market. This decision could drastically alter the tech landscape and has far-reaching implications for consumers, advertisers and marketers. With ongoing appeals, immediate changes are unlikely, but the long-term impact could be significant. 📈 Google controls 89.2% of the search market, rising to 94.9% on mobile devices.  🖥️ The ruling may lead to changes in default search settings, impacting Google's revenue and market dynamics.  🔍 Competitors like Bing could see increased opportunities as a result of this ruling. So, should you rethink your digital strategy in light of this ruling? While the ruling’s full impact will take time to unfold, it’s crucial to diversify your digital approach 📱 Learn more about the implications of this decision and what it means for the tech landscape: https://lnkd.in/ewHiTyPn

"Google acted illegally to maintain a monopoly in online search [...]" Let's be honest, we were all thinking it. The real question is, will this stand? And, what will the implications be? Will de-monopolizing efforts even have an effect on Google's search dominance? If it does, I think it will be minimal. Google is already such an established brand. It's the default for most people. That's just my opinion, what do you think? #seo #search #google https://lnkd.in/evDyiZPU

Friends, The data shows the true story of how Google and other major players control user interests. There is "No" net neutrality. Net neutrality is the principle that Internet service providers (ISPs) must treat all data on the Internet the same way, and not discriminate or charge differently by user, content, website, platform, or application. In practice, this means that ISPs cannot intentionally block, slow down, or charge money for specific online content. I am concerned with companies like Google, Apple, Microsoft and their ability to influence user access and preferences through search algorithms, content prioritization, and targeted advertising. This raises questions about the fairness and openness of the internet, as these companies can potentially manipulate the visibility and accessibility of information. I emphasize the importance of decentralized technologies to disrupt such centralized control. In one of my patents, I discuss how decentralized voice technology could revolutionize user interfaces by providing more control to individual users rather than large corporations. Additionally, my course on AI-Enhanced Immersive Technologies for Enterprise Excellence explores how AI can be used ethically and efficiently in business, without compromising user control and data privacy . In the realm of digital art, I illustrate how AI can be used as a tool for personal creativity, emphasizing the importance of private AI versus public AI to ensure the originality and ownership of created works. My extensive experience and innovative approaches aim to foster a more open and equitable technological landscape, advocating for the ethical use of technology and the preservation of net neutrality principles

“For every 1.000 EU Google searches, 374 clicks go to the open web” while "240 go to another Google property". The new SparkToro report confirms the negative impact of Google's self-preferencing in #search. “Google’s back to referring a historically high amount of its search clicks to its own properties. That’s not great for #competition in sectors like flights, hotels, videos, local reviews, and dozens of others, and it’s evident that Google continues to use its monopoly power in search to unfairly compete in other arenas. This is separate from the tactics Google’s used to maintain its advertising monopoly [..], but in my opinion, equally worthy of attention and redress. This chart is, however, evidence that things are different in the EU vs. US; it is, in fact, the most substantive difference between searchers in the two regions. Perhaps the EU’s regulations against self-preferencing are actually working! At least a little.” Note that the EC has launched an investigation into Google's insufficient implementation of the ban on self-preferencing. Once Google complies, the benefits of the #DMA for EU businesses will become fully apparent.

Big news out today! The judge has ruled against Google in the big anti-trust case. This is surely to be appealed so there's much more to come but below are some of my favorite snippets from the press: • “Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly,” Judge Mehta said in his ruling. • The government argued that by paying billions of dollars to be the automatic search engine on consumer devices, Google had denied its competitors the opportunity to build the scale required to compete with its search engine. • Government lawyers said Google had raised the price of ads beyond the rates that should exist in a free market, which they argued was a sign of the company’s power. • Judge Mehta’s Google decision is likely to be appealed. “Regardless of who wins or loses, this case probably has a date with the Supreme Court,” Things are about to get spicy🌶️and I’m here for it #Antitrust #TechNews #Google #SEM #SEO #DigitalAdvertising #Law

Let’s hope that EU regulation is beginning to make a difference and prevent discrimination and self preference. See below for EU and US differences.

Yesterday, a federal judge ruled that Google has a monopoly on Online Search. This is a critical moment in history for all marketers and business owners to pay attention to. This court case won't get resolved for several years and will likely go to the Supreme Court eventually, but here is what it means for everyone right away: 1. Google is going to be under heavy scrutiny until the case is resolved. 2. Google's largest competitors are going to be coming out of the woodworks with alternative search engine products or ramping up existing search products to win market share. 3. Businesses need to stay informed so they can capitalize on all of the search opportunities that arise during this volatile time period. If you want to stay informed on search engine news or general marketing industry trends, sign up for our marketing updates newsletter to stay ahead of the game: https://rb.gy/cujuzh ----- Check out this NYT article for more information on the court decision: https://lnkd.in/dXNwg2QT #searchenginemarketing #googlemonopoly #antitrust #businessowners #digitalmarketing

When it comes to search, Google is a monopoly. That's the ruling from a US federal judge who called Google a "monopolist." It's not an opinion shared by all, but the weight of this decision could come crashing down on Google and its position as the world's most widely-used search engine. I've long argued that Google achieved this dominant search engine position by being not just a good Internet wayfinder, but by being the best. GenZ may not remember a time before you "Googled" something, but some of us were there at the dawn of the World Wide Web, a network that grew so fast and wide that it quickly became unknowable. Web Search was a critical and, for a time, a varied industry. Google wasn't even there at the start. Yahoo, Lycos, Alta Vista, and Northern Light (really felt like a canny lighthouse reference) all predated Google, which arrived in 1999. Where early search focused on pure indexing and some unscalable browse-tree stratagems, Google, from day one, was algorithmic. Sure, it spidered and indexed, but it also weighted for relevancy. The story of how Google came to dominate is almost obvious and well-known. The question that this ruling appears to answer is how, after winning the battle, Google maintained control... #google #search #technology #monopoly

US federal judge ruled that Google acted illegally to maintain its monopoly over online search. This is a big news for every internet user, here is why https://lnkd.in/dXNwg2QT Google search is the dominant online search engine with an estimated 90% of market shares. While this dominance can be explained by the quality of Google search (it "just works"), that's not the whole story... For years Google has paid billions of dollars to other companies such as Apple and Samsung to be set as the default search engine. So if you buy a new phone, chances are Google search will be the first thing you see opening a browser This is problematic for 2 reasons: 1/ it prevents competitors from capturing new market shares 🔒. If you've always been presented with Google search in a browser, you might not even realise there are other search engines like DuckDuckGo, Bing or Kagi. This becomes even more of a problem as search results are in part informed by users' behaviour. If a link is repeatedly clicked for a particular query, it should rank better. Less users means less data to improve your product 📉 2/ Google's empire is built on ads, including the ones that appear in Google search. By monopolising the online search market, they also control the distribution of ads on this market This has allowed Google to raise ad prices beyond reasonable rates in order to create greater profit - typical monopolistic behaviour 👹💰 In the end, it's users that pay the final price. Weak competition means less opportunities for better products and more chances of abusive practices such as lowering the bar for privacy protections. No remedy has been proposed yet, and Google intends to appeal the ruling. But this is a strongdecision that gives us hope that this behaviour is unacceptable Big tech companies have acquired too much power in online markets, at the expense of our privacy. Read more on our website: https://lnkd.in/eGQ8g6pN