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Cyrix2k OP t1_j5r9okd wrote

Reply to comment by 1QAte4 in Justice Dept. sues Google over digital advertising dominance by Cyrix2k

MapQuest was free before Google came along

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1QAte4 t1_j5r9yt8 wrote

Yeah and you used to have to print out the directions on your home PC. You still needed to go to their website which had ads too.

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Cyrix2k OP t1_j5ranc7 wrote

Many years ago that was true. My point is that without Google's influence and anti-competitive policies, it's likely MapQuest would have continued to be the dominant player for online mapping which was originally free and would likely continue to be free. The fact it's ad supported is immaterial - back then, it would have been supported by non-Google ads. It's a great example of why Google should be broken up.

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1QAte4 t1_j5rd7rd wrote

My point was: would the MapQuest in your timeline where Google doesn't exist be a better product than Google Maps today? I am not convinced that MapQuest would have made an even as good product as Google Maps without having the Google Ad system to help develop it.

I agree that Google seems to have a monopoly on internet ads. You are totally correct about that. But my point is that we need to be careful when we start "breaking up" tech companies since the unintended consequences can be dramatic for every day systems that we take for granted. The average consumer doesn't care about there being a competitive digital advertising market. The average consumer wants free services and will resent those services being taken away because the DoJ broke up Google. The government genuinely cannot afford to disrupt services hundreds of millions of Americans have come to rely on.

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