Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG, NASDAQ:GOOGL) stock investors are surely on edge ahead of the start of what may well be a precedent-setting monopoly trial against the search-engine giant. Indeed, on Tuesday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) will begin its first antitrust lawsuit in years against Google in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia.
What do you need to know about tomorrow’s case?
Well, after more than three years of pretrial hearings, Google will finally have its day (or rather, 10 weeks) in court. Judge Amit Mehta, a 2014 Obama-era appointee, will oversee the trial after being randomly assigned to the case several years ago.
The case against Google is relatively simple. The DOJ alleges that Google assisted the maintenance of its monopoly on search engines by making deals with smartphone makers to systematically undercut the competition.
Interestingly, this isn’t the only antitrust lawsuit against Google in the pipeline. In fact, Jonathan Kanter, Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust at the DOJ, is also currently overseeing a case against Google in the ad tech market. The Justice Department and eight states sued Google back in January for misusing technology to strengthen its own online marketing monopoly.
The fifth DOJ-backed antitrust lawsuit against Google since 2020, if found valid, would force Google to sell some of its ad technology products.
According to the ad tech lawsuit, Google allegedly “corrupted legitimate competition in the ad tech industry by engaging in a systematic campaign to seize control of the wide swath of high-tech tools used by publishers, advertisers and brokers to facilitate digital advertising.”
What does all of this mean for GOOGL stock?
GOOGL Stock on Edge Ahead of Trial
While Google has enjoyed a tremendous year in the market so far — up more than 50% year-to-date (YTD) — it seems investors are a bit hesitant early in the week. GOOGL stock is down less than half a percent in trading on Monday, even as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both trend in the green.
Reasonably so, with recession fears in full swing and the start of the landmark antitrust case a day away, it’s no wonder some traders are stepping back from the “buy” button, at least for GOOGL stock.
Tomorrow’s case will feature a host of economists, tech leaders, lawyers and engineers to testify to Google’s alleged foul play. Whether anything comes of the trial remains to be seen.
On the date of publication, Shrey Dua did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
