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A 40 state bipartisan effort to led by the AG of Texas.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/states-...es-11567762204
https://www.wsj.com/articles/states-...es-11567762204
States to Launch Google, Facebook Antitrust Probes
WASHINGTONTop state law-enforcement officials from across the country are formally launching antitrust probes into Facebook Inc. and Alphabet Inc.s Google starting next week, further pressuring tech giants already under federal scrutiny over whether their online dominance stifles competition.
The moves, involving two large bipartisan coalitions of state attorneys general, add considerable heft to the investigative efforts under way in Washington. As in the governments antitrust action against Microsoft Corp. two decades ago, state attorneys general are likely to provide important contributions to the substance of the investigations, complementing the federal efforts.
"The states can play a crucial role in augmenting federal antitrust enforcement," said Gene Kimmelman, a senior adviser at Public Knowledge, a consumer group that focuses on tech issues. "Cases are so resource intensive that dividing the work could be enormously valuable to cover the entire digital landscape."
Details of the Google probe are to be disclosed at a news conference outside the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday. A bipartisan group of perhaps more than 40 attorneys general will join that effort, which is being led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, according to people familiar with the matter.
In a news release Friday, Mr. Paxton's office said the news conference will detail "a multistate investigation into whether large tech companies have engaged in anticompetitive behavior that stifled competition, restricted access and harmed consumers."
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WASHINGTONTop state law-enforcement officials from across the country are formally launching antitrust probes into Facebook Inc. and Alphabet Inc.s Google starting next week, further pressuring tech giants already under federal scrutiny over whether their online dominance stifles competition.
The moves, involving two large bipartisan coalitions of state attorneys general, add considerable heft to the investigative efforts under way in Washington. As in the governments antitrust action against Microsoft Corp. two decades ago, state attorneys general are likely to provide important contributions to the substance of the investigations, complementing the federal efforts.
"The states can play a crucial role in augmenting federal antitrust enforcement," said Gene Kimmelman, a senior adviser at Public Knowledge, a consumer group that focuses on tech issues. "Cases are so resource intensive that dividing the work could be enormously valuable to cover the entire digital landscape."
Details of the Google probe are to be disclosed at a news conference outside the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday. A bipartisan group of perhaps more than 40 attorneys general will join that effort, which is being led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, according to people familiar with the matter.
In a news release Friday, Mr. Paxton's office said the news conference will detail "a multistate investigation into whether large tech companies have engaged in anticompetitive behavior that stifled competition, restricted access and harmed consumers."
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