Weekly Rewind: 4/25/25
US v. Google remedies trial begins, junk fee, rent-fixing action in the states, and more.
By Kainoa Lowman
US v. Google Remedies Trial Begins: DOJ Calls for Strong, Forward-Looking Remedies for AI Era
On Monday, trial began in the remedies phase of the Department of Justice’s antitrust case against Google for illegally monopolizing the market for online search.
At this point, you might be overwhelmed by the antitrust headlines surrounding Google, as the walls close in on the notorious monopolist across multiple legal cases. The trial that began this week is to determine how the government can address Google’s illegal search monopoly (the remedies phase), after a court ruled in August of last year that Google is in fact an illegal monopolist in online search (the liabiliy phase). Last week, in a separate case also brought by the DOJ, Google was ruled an illegal monopolist in the market for online advertising technology, or “adtech.” And back in December 2023, a jury found that Google had an illegal app store monopoly in a private antitrust case brought by developer Epic Games.
The main takeaway from the search remedies trial so far is that the Trump DOJ Antitrust Division and the 49 state Attorneys General who have joined the case are united and determined to pursue a break up of Google—to restore fairness in the search market that is so critical to the livelihoods of journalists, content creators, and countless small businesses, and to promote competition and innovation in the AI era. Gail Slater, the new head of the DOJ Antitrust Division, personally showed up to the courtroom on Monday in a show of force.
Junk Fee, Rent-Fixing Action in the States
On Monday, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed into law House Bill 25-1090, making Colorado the fourth state to enact a law banning junk fees—and the first this year, with active legislation still on the table in nine other states (Massachusetts enacted a junk fee ban via regulation in March).
This was just the first piece of encouraging news this week on state corporate-power governance. On Wednesday, New Jersey became the third state (including DC) to to file its own antitrust suit against RealPage, a software provider that has allegedly driven algorithmic price-fixing among landlords across the country. These state-led suits come on top of a lawsuit filed by the DOJ and eight other states against RealPage last summer, and alongside legislative efforts to ban RealPage by over 20 states and municipalities.
Monopolies Could Take Advantage of Trump’s Tariffs to Hurt Small Businesses and Consumers
As Trump’s chaotic tariff announcements begin to impact global supply chains, Research Director Matt Stoller wrote an important analysis of how coming price and supply shocks could benefit giant corporations at the expense of small businesses. Corporations with market power, such as Albertsons, are already announcing they will not accept price increases from suppliers—creating something called the “waterbed effect,” where suppliers will compensate for these demands by raising prices on smaller stores. The dynamic also works in reverse, where retailers force small suppliers to give price concessions while accepting hikes from bigger suppliers.
As they did during COVID, large retailers might also use their muscle to secure newly-scarce products during a shortage, putting smaller competitors at a disadvantage. ( Similarly, large companies will be first in line to secure credit amidst a shriveling market for capital). And of course, the tariff disruptions will provide cover for collusion and gouging in consolidated industries. As The Lever reported, pricing consultants are already instructing clients to hike prices aggressively, and McKinsey is suggesting that businesses optimize their tariff strategies around where they have less competition, in order to margin up.
It all amounts to a situation where the big guys win and the little guys—and consumers—lose.
Trade Terms in Flux
The White House continues to host closed-door “tariff-relief” talks with scores of countries. The president and other administration officials have been meeting with representatives of large corporations about tariff policy, while most in Congress and the public remains uninformed about what is being demanded from what countries. Two different types of deals seem to be emerging. The administration has indicated it will launch full trade agreement talk with the UK, Kenya, the EU and India, Earlier this week, USTR Jamieson Greer confirmed that terms of reference for an agreement with India were finalized, but the terms have not been made public. A second category is narrow deals targeting specific issues, some unrelated to trade. In his First 100 Days interview with TIME Magazine, Trump said that he expects deals to be announced in the next three to four weeks, with Scott Bessent anticipating an agreement with South Korea as soon as next week. But an imminent “deal” with Japan has proved to be only an agreement to hold future talks. Reports that Trump is considering cutting tariffs on China came after retail CEOs raised concerns about supply chain disruption that could lead to higher prices and empty shelves. But whether that means cuts from 145% to 30% or elimination of the new tariffs is an open question.
Read Rethink Trade Director Lori Wallach in Commonplace on where Trump’s tariff policy leaves the longstanding debate on U.S. trade reform. Also catch Lori in this More Perfect Union video about Mack Trucks building a new plant in Mexico.
- Katie Hettinga
Quick Hits
The FTC sued Uber on Monday, alleging the gig economy giant charged consumers for its Uber One subscription without consent, failed to deliver advertised savings, and trapped users in the service despite “cancel anytime” promises.
Independent pharmacists in Mississippi are organizing to push for reforms to address the vertically-consolidated PBMs threatening their livelihoods. Arkansas passed a first-in-the-nation structural reform bill last week.
The FTC’s antitrust trial against Meta, for illegally monopolizing the friends-and-family social networking market through anticompetitive acquisitions, is in its second week. For the latest updates, check out Big Tech on Trial.
Who would have have thought Mississippi and Arkansas will be leading the charge against pbm's?