A watchdog group is asking the Justice Department to investigate YouTube for its dominance in the home entertainment market

JAKARTA – A number of technology regulatory groups and competitions have called on the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate YouTube, arguing that the video streaming platform could allow Google and its parent, Alphabet, to dominate home entertainment.

In a letter dated Tuesday, June 11, to Justice Department Antitrust Chief Jonathan Kanter, the American Economic Liberties Project, Demand Progress and nine other groups expressed concern about YouTube’s growth as a competitor to its cable television and streaming services and pre-installations on YouTube platforms. smartphones and TVs sold in the US.

The groups have called on regulators to investigate YouTube, which is one of the top streaming services in the US. Google already dominates the Internet search market and is a leader in online advertising technology.

“YouTube has a decade-long history of dominating various markets to drive out competition, retain customers, and force purchases of bundled services,” the groups wrote.

The growth of YouTube TV, the company’s subscription streaming service, increases Google’s “prospects for domination in the hospitality industry,” the groups say.

“Anyone looking for something to watch can see that this space is very competitive,” a YouTube spokesperson said. He added that the companies compete directly with streaming services such as Netflix and Disney+, as well as other video platforms such as Meta and TikTok’s Instagram.

In April, Alphabet reported quarterly YouTube ad revenue of more than $8 billion, up 21% from the same period last year. Google CEO Philipp Schindler said at the time that the platform had been the most-watched streaming service in the U.S. for more than a year, citing data from analytics firm Nielsen Audience.

Google is currently facing two antitrust lawsuits filed by the Department of Justice and several states. One claims that the company monopolizes the internet search market and the other claims that the company dominates the digital advertising technology market.

Google fought both cases, arguing that the success was achieved legally.

According to advocacy groups, YouTube is “the third pillar of the pro-Google monopoly bench.”

Lee Hepner, a lawyer with the American Economic Liberties Project, compared the groups’ concerns about YouTube to the conduct at issue in the search cases, in which antitrust enforcement argued that billions of dollars in a revenue-sharing agreement with smartphone makers allowed Google to maintain its dominance in online searches.

“What is Google TV if not a distribution system for Google’s own streaming service?” Hepner said.

Antitrust concerns about Big Tech have reached several governments, with a case against Google and one against Meta Platforms brought during President Donald Trump’s administration. President Joe Biden’s antitrust enforcers continued their second case against Google and cases against Amazon.com and Apple.

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