Follow the Money: The Podcast EU vs Google: The battle for the internet
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Nov 26, 2025 Simon van Dorpe, a competition policy expert, dives into the EU's antitrust battle against Google's digital dominance. He discusses how Google's aggressive lobbying tactics complicate regulatory efforts. The duo reveals how Google's 'tyranny of default' and its 2008 DoubleClick acquisition have fortified its market power. They highlight why consumers should care about privacy and targeted ads, and whether the EU can really break up this tech giant amid potential U.S. pushback. The conversation underscores that the fate of Google may hinge more on politics than law.
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Investigative Database Tracked Lobby Meetings
- Alexander Fanta described building a database tracking commission lobbying meetings with big tech.
- He used that work to trace Google's influence and inform the investigation.
Dominance Built Through Vertical Integration
- Google leverages its dominance across services to dominate online advertising markets.
- That vertical integration lets Google connect user data, ad inventory and buyers to capture huge ad revenue.
Abuse Of Dominance Harms Competitors And Publishers
- Regulators say Google abused dominance by buying rivals and favoring its own services.
- That conduct allegedly harms competition, publishers' revenues and possibly consumers via higher ad costs.