SEARCH ENGINES

IN SEARCH OF FAIR
PLAY
S Assignment #4 Case
study

ZEESHAN Mrs Sara Farhan

Micro economics

190735
 Assignment #4: SEARCH ENGINES IN SEARCH OF FAIR PLAY.

Q1: Can Google be characterized as a monopoly? Justify your answer by specifying and
comparing the characteristics of a monopoly with those of Google.
Ans: Google has become a monopoly in Internet searching, but other than this segment, it is not
a monopoly. Using Google to navigate the web remains the preferred method by which most
people find information online. However, Google is far from a monopoly in terms of the entire
gamut of Internet services. The perception of Google being a monopoly is derived from the fact
it happens to have dominance in the most lucrative area of the Internet. In the segment it is trying
to enter India cannot be considered as a monopoly but google is dominant in internet searching
services as mentioned.
From Upstart to Juggernaut.
Google's monopoly does not come from coercion or anti-competitive practices. Instead, it is
derived from offering a superior product. On the Internet, there is little barrier to entry so anyone
can set up competition at little cost. Through Google's history, many well-capitalized companies
have attempted to wrest market share away from it. The most aggressive and recent competitor
was Microsoft's Bing. Even Google at one time was an upstart company that beat out billion-
dollar companies such as Microsoft and Yahoo, which were dominant in Internet searches.
Google makes money from searches by selling promoted advertising based on search keywords.
The ads are more powerful than traditional advertising because they can be targeted by interest
and geography. Advertisers like the program because they can get real-time feedback on the
effectiveness and engagement of their ads. This continues to be the backbone of Google's
business and its major source of revenue.
Q2: Why it is not against competition law to have a monopoly?
Ans: Google is not against competition law because google doesn’t practice that way google
provides its consumers a quality search product and other superior services by doing so most of
the users tend to use google by their own will as google mentioned in its perspective also its true
that google is dominant in most of the internet services but it is not against the competition law.
Consumers have their free will to choose weather to use google or not, the competitors are afraid
of its popularity and dominant position and do not want to lose their market share that’s why
they are blaming such an innovative company but there are some monopolistic things that google
uses.
Q3: In your view, is Google pursuing anti - competitive (monopoly) practices, why?
Ans: Looking at it that way google has become a monopoly in internet searching. But other that
it is not a monopoly why u would say? Having over 90 % of the market share in internet search
you automatically become the one and only. But google also doesn’t pursue anti-competitive
(monopoly)
Its just smart business using its dominant position and the free will of its loyal consumers google
is playing real smart in business.
In 2014, Google had just under $60 billion in revenue with nearly 90% coming from searches.
As of 2015, Google had 75% market share in searches. People use Google to search nearly 13
billion times per month, which averages to 26 searches per person per year. There are very few
products in the world with this ubiquity and dominance. Despite these impressive numbers, it is
not fair to call Google a monopoly, because it is not suppressing competition. There are no
significant barriers to entry, and customers have no significant transaction costs in switching
services.
Q4: What are the possible outcomes if Google's anti-competitive (monopoly) practices are
not curbed?
Ans: Google’s practices aren’t that monopolistic according to my view, thou the search giant has
some dominant areas that doesn’t mean it practices anti-competitive (monopoly) but to answer
this question I would say organizations that has the power to do so is to keep check on google, if
google behaves like that they should act after all a market is for all not just for one.