Tough enforcement continues even as tech bosses court the president.
Donald Trump has slapped down European tech rules and promised to slash regulation at home. But his administration is still pushing to break up America’s biggest companies. Washington continues to pursue cases aimed at curbing the market power of Google, Apple, Amazon, and Meta.
The Department of Justice showed no signs of relenting after a federal judge on Tuesday rejected its request to break up Google in the most high-profile monopoly case in a quarter century. “We’re not done,” said Gail Slater, head of the DoJ’s antitrust division, which originally brought the Google case during the president’s first term. “This case is historic.” But the Google decision exposes tensions at the heart of the Trump administration, between those seeking to challenge Big Tech and others that appear more open to Silicon Valley dealmaking. Trump nominated Slater in December with a mandate to go after Big Tech, a sector he said “has run wild for years, stifling competition in our most innovative sector.”
Vice President JD Vance last year told the Financial Times that Google should be broken up. However, in July, the DoJ fired two of its most senior antitrust enforcers. One of those, Roger Alford, formerly Slater’s second-in-command, has alleged that tech lobbyists influenced aides to Attorney General Pam Bondi before negotiating a settlement that allowed Hewlett Packard Enterprise to complete a $14bn acquisition of rival Juniper Networks. The public stance of US administration officials such as Slater and Vance marks a rare area of continuity with Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, who also aggressively pursued antitrust enforcement. “That’s what we’ve seen so far,” said Nicholas Rodelli, an analyst at investment research group Washington Analysis. “Some of these cases were brought under the first Trump administration, or were already in the works then.” Tuesday’s decision followed a landmark ruling last year that Google operated an illegal monopoly in online search. The DoJ sought to break up Google by forcing the sale of its Chrome browser — and wipe out the multibillion-dollar contracts it strikes with partners such as Apple to promote its search engine.
But in a decision on the so-called remedies for Google’s monopoly, Judge Amit Mehta took a less stringent approach — barring Google from entering into exclusive distribution deals and mandating greater sharing of search data. The outcome was cheered on Wall Street, as it fell far short of a worst-case scenario for the tech giant. But the Trump administration’s dogged pursuit of these cases has punctured optimism that the president would shift tack in his second term. Tech bosses, including Google’s Sundar Pichai, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, and Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg, have courted Trump and lined up to donate to his inauguration in January.
A charm offensive by Apple’s Tim Cook culminated last month in a meeting at the Oval Office, where Trump promised tariff relief for Apple as Cook announced an additional $100bn investment in the U.S.
Yet Apple continues to face a DOJ antitrust lawsuit accusing it of abusing a smartphone monopoly. Strict antitrust enforcement against Big Tech comes as the administration pursues a deregulation drive, arguing that excessive rulemaking stifles business. “There’s a real tension between saying ‘We’re going to continue to be tough… but we don’t want to impose undue burdens upon you,’” said Bill Kovacic, former chair of the Federal Trade Commission. The White House is fighting regulation even beyond the U.S’s borders, clashing with the EU over digital rules affecting American tech companies. Trump last week threatened tariffs and export controls on countries whose taxes or restrictions on tech companies “discriminate” against the U.S.
During recent trade talks, the US also attacked the EU’s Digital Services Act, which forces big tech companies to police their platforms more aggressively. Andrew Ferguson, Trump’s FTC chair, earlier this year chided “Brussels bureaucrats” over the bloc’s digital rules. Kovacic said the Trump administration has clearly signaled it does not want foreign regulators to touch US companies. “If there’s a punishment to be doled out, we’ll do it. You don’t do it,” he said of the approach. The president’s defence of US tech companies overseas stands at odds with backing for tough antitrust action at home. It comes as he has pursued an unusually interventionist approach to the US economy, striking individual deals with companies in exchange for commitments to further his agenda. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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US antitrust officials have stated that politics will not influence their enforcement decisions. However, Daniel Newman, chief executive of The Futurum Group, a research company, said, “The Trump administration may see these cases as leverage in its broader policy agenda.” Trump’s antitrust position also reflects a new generation of populist Republicans who believe enforcement against Big Tech’s dominance is necessary to counter its alleged censorship of conservative voices. The sector has used “its market power to crack down on the rights of so many Americans”, Trump said in December. In February, he criticised Apple over its diversity policies. Google scrapped diversity hiring targets around the same time. Trump’s policymaking has proved volatile, and the administration could still change course. Choosing not to appeal against the decision in the Google search case could signal a new approach.
For now, however, Big Tech groups face a daunting series of court dates. Google is still facing a second antitrust lawsuit, with a judge earlier this year ruling that it illegally acquired and maintained a monopoly in digital advertising. Prosecutors will seek divestments of crucial parts of Google’s online advertising business in the trial’s second phase at a Virginia court later this month. The FTC earlier this year forged ahead with an antitrust trial accusing Meta of retaining an illegal monopoly — despite Zuckerberg seeking to negotiate a settlement. Meta is awaiting a judgment from the trial’s first phase.
The competition agency also doubled down in a case challenging Amazon’s Prime service. Earlier this year, the FTC chair quashed concerns from one of his own lawyers that the trial should be delayed owing to resource constraints. “I have made it clear since day one that we will commit the resources necessary for this case,” Ferguson said. “The Trump-Vance FTC will never back down from taking on Big Tech.” At the DoJ, Slater is also showing no signs of relenting. “The United States will not tolerate the abuse of power by digital monopolies,” she wrote on Tuesday. “Markets should be free, not manipulated or regulated by digital tyrants.”
