'Enemy of Google' US DOJ Antitrust Chief Picked... Biden Completes Formation of Tech Companies Attack 'Triangle Squad'

Google Expected to Lead Antitrust Lawsuit Upon Senate Approval

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Baek Jong-min] U.S. President Joe Biden has chosen the final "finishing touch" to curb the unchecked dominance of tech companies.

Jonathan Kanter, nominee for the head of the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division, famous as the "enemy of Google."

On the 20th (local time), U.S. political media Axios reported that President Biden has nominated attorney Jonathan Kanter as the head of the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division. The head of the DOJ Antitrust Division is a key position in the antitrust field.

Kanter is well known for representing lawsuits against the search giant Google. Bloomberg described him as a "Google adversary" nominated for the antitrust chief position.

If Kanter passes Senate confirmation and officially begins his duties, he will lead the DOJ's antitrust lawsuit against Google. The antitrust lawsuit against Google, filed during the Trump administration, is expected to enter full-scale court battles starting in 2023. Kanter is also expected to lead the government's lawsuit regarding the merger of Facebook and WhatsApp. Investigations into Apple's App Store antitrust practices are also anticipated to fall under Kanter's responsibilities.

Kanter has advocated for more aggressive measures against giant tech companies. In particular, he has argued that the methods of analyzing competition in digital markets need to be revised.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

According to Bloomberg, Kanter criticized the failure of regulatory authorities to raise monopoly issues against major tech giants at an event hosted by the think tank New America. Through his writings, he has also argued that monopolistic companies stifle innovation.

Because of this background, progressive figures within the Democratic Party who have called for checks on major tech companies have supported Kanter.

President Biden has recently been actively appointing individuals hostile to tech companies. Lina Khan, who was previously appointed chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), was even classified as an "Amazon killer." The appointment of Tim Wu, White House technology competition policy advisor and the originator of net neutrality, also sparked backlash from tech companies.

Lina Khan, Chair of the U.S. FTC [Photo by Reuters]

Progressive figures shared photos of coffee mugs featuring "Wu Kanter on the right, Kanter on the left," expressing hopes for the two to join the Biden administration. This reflected expectations that the two would aggressively push the confrontation between the U.S. government and giant tech companies.

In particular, unlike the FTC chair, who operates within a five-member commission, the head of the DOJ Antitrust Division has the authority to independently enforce antitrust laws, making Kanter potentially a more formidable figure than FTC Chair Khan.

Amazon and Facebook submitted recusal petitions to the FTC, asking to exclude Khan from antitrust investigations due to her critical stance toward them, but now they face an even more formidable "tiger."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.