WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States argued on Tuesday that Alphabet Inc’s Google broke the law in its efforts to dominate online search, as a trial seen as a battle for the soul of the internet got underway before a packed court in Washington.
Below are some quotations from the top lawyers for the US and Google.
KENNETH DINTZER, deputy branch director at the U.S. Justice Department:
“This case is about the future of the internet.”
“If Google sets the rules, it will always be to their advantage.”
“Google manipulates auctions for ads placed on the internet” to raise ad prices.
Regarding Google communications about revenue sharing deals with companies like Apple: “They knew these agreements crossed antitrust lines.”
JOHN SCHMIDTLEIN, lead lawyer for Google:
Defending Google’s 90% market share in search: “The large majority of Windows PC users search on Google, not (Microsoft’s) Bing.”
Regarding the market place for search engines: “Users today have more search options and more ways to access information online than ever before.”
Discussing Apple’s and Mozilla’s competitions to pick best search engines: “Google won these competitions on the merits.”
Describing how easy it is to replace Google with a different search engine: “A few easy clicks.”
(Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Richard Chang)
