Google (GOOG) came very close to facing antitrust charges when it planned to partially marry its search system with Yahoo!’s (YHOO). With 65% of the US search market, analysts believe the Google has a monopoly without Yahoo!.
It is ironic then that Google has joined the EU in its complaint against the dominance of Microsoft’s (MSFT) browser.
In a statement picked up by Reuters, Sundar Pichai, Google vice president product manager said, “Google believes that the browser market is still largely uncompetitive, which holds back innovation for users.”
It is yet another way for Google to tie up Microsoft resources while it tries to to gain share from the world’s largest software company. By helping to stretch Microsoft’s resources, Google will buy itself time to compete.
The EU suit is a legacy of a period when Microsoft was a successful monopolist. Its Internet Explorer browser is quickly losing business to Google’s own Chrome product and offerings from Mozilla and Apple (AAPL). The European case may help Microsoft’s competition, but it is based on a competitive world that no longer exists. Microsoft has lost too much ground.
Douglas A. McIntyre
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