Today’s Big Story

‘Google Is a Monopolist’

The ruling on Google’s search dominance was the first antitrust decision of the modern internet era

Google is a monopoly. In theory, this isn’t all that shocking, right? The brand is so familiar and utilized that the name has become a verb—just “google” it. But, a judge on Monday ruled that Google’s ubiquitous search engine has been illegally exploiting its dominance to squash competition and stifle innovation.

The decision is being called “seismic” and “historic”, since it could shake up the internet and hobble one of the world’s richest and most powerful companies. The highly anticipated decision issued by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta comes nearly a year after the start of a trial pitting the U.S. Justice Department against Google in the country's biggest antitrust showdown in a quarter century. The last significant antitrust ruling against a tech company targeted Microsoft more than two decades ago.

The case depicted Google as a technological bully that methodically thwarted competition to protect a search engine that has become the centerpiece of a digital advertising machine that generated nearly $240 billion in revenue last year. Justice Department lawyers argued that Google's monopoly enabled it to charge advertisers artificially high prices while also enjoying the luxury of not having to invest more time and money into improving the quality of its search engine. Google “enjoys an 89.2% share of the market for general search services, which increases to 94.9% on mobile devices,” the ruling said.

The decision is proof that current U.S. antitrust law can be successfully applied to online companies born in the digital age, and factors beyond customer price can convince a judge that a company “acted as a monopolist.” However, Mehta’s ruling is about liability—not remedies—so it's unclear what Google will be required to do next.

The New York Times says that the ruling is likely to influence other government antitrust lawsuits against Google, Apple, Amazon and Meta, the owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.

Politics Takes Over the Workplace

Employers teach de-escalation techniques as divisive discussions become hard to avoid

We hear it every election, but this cycle really does feel like it has greater importance, right? The stakes feel high and this summer’s dizzying political landscape—which included a failed assassination attempt on Trump and Biden’s decision to bow out—have thrust talk of the election back into America’s offices, Slack channels, break rooms and work sites.

Companies with front-line employees face their own challenges, particularly if customers try to draw workers into a political discussion. The Wall Street Journal says that Hilton has expanded training programs for employees working at its properties to include de-escalation techniques designed to “lower the temperature” on a number of topics, especially politics.

This is obviously what “watercooler talk” is all about, right? Current events, etc. but Roxanne Gay’s ‘Work Friend’ advice column reminds us that your workplace isn’t your soapbox and that expressing your political views nonstop at the office can backfire. And contrary to popular belief, employees of private employers do not have unfettered “freedom of speech” in the workplace under the First Amendment.

About Those New Olympic Sports

The Olympics started out with nine sports, but this summer it features 32

Breakdancing, or “breaking”, hits the Olympic stage for the first time this year, joining three other nontraditional sports that were introduced at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics—sport climbing, surfing and skateboarding. And there are also new events in sports like kayaking. Have you seen kayak cross?! It’s as much of a sport as it is something that would get a bunch of rowdy teens banned from the public pool.

Seriously, watch this video. Vulture calls it “a kind of mix between a ski slalom and white-water rafting and something you would see on one of the silly game shows that air on ABC in the summer where people risk bodily injury for small cash prizes.” But this is why I love the Olympics. Every few years, we get reminded about all the amazing ways we can compete and enjoy sports of all kinds. From the dancing horses of dressage to the dangers of pole vaulting.

But how do new sports get added to the lineup? Only five sports—aquatics, athletics, cycling, fencing and gymnastics—have appeared in each of the 30 iterations of the Olympic Games. Some, such as croquet and karate, have had much shorter Olympic runs and were discontinued immediately after debut. Others, like baseball, come in and out of the Games. The process of adding a sport to the Olympic program is a complicated one that comes with a long list of criteria and continues to undergo changes. After proving that it meets a myriad of requirements, a sport can be considered for and added the traditional way—by being added to the Initial Sports Program by the International Olympic Committee—or the new way—by proposal of the host country.

What’s Happening to Budget Airlines

Seating changes, premium options … maybe higher ticket prices

There’s something going down at the airport. Low-cost carriers have long promised the best deals in exchange for barebones service. But many, including Frontier Airlines, Spirit Airlines and Southwest Airlines, are switching things up in order to improve the passenger experience—with the latter even abandoning its free-for-all seating model that it has had since its inception in favor of assigned seating.

Economy-plus fever is gripping the airline industry, says Axios, potentially leaving fewer seats for travelers who want to save a buck or two and don't mind being stuffed back in coach. Spirit Airlines recently unveiled a new tiered fare model with four levels of service, ranging from the no-frills “Go” option all the way up to “Go Big”, which includes bigger seats, in-flight snacks, priority boarding and more.

“What we're seeing is basically a structural change for these low-cost airlines,” says David Slotnick, senior airline business reporter at The Points Guy. The idea, he believes, is to be “more like a fancier bus, with nicer seats up front, and they can make more money selling them.” Of course, while adding more comforts is certainly welcome, lower-cost airlines must also focus on improving operations and on-time performance to compete effectively with the major carriers.

Your August Reading List

From a memoir about the art world to some hilarious and adrenaline-pinching novels

How’s your summer reading going? If you haven’t been turning the pages as much as you’d hope, there’s still plenty of time. And this month brings some really compelling books to sink into. There’s something to suit anyone’s taste, from a memoir about the art world to some hilarious and adrenaline-pinching novels.

Embrace the lessons.