U.S. DOJ Should Join Australia in Rejecting Google’s Merger Conditions and Should Block Google’s Takeover of Fitbit
Meanwhile, Germany and France should force the European Commission to reverse its dangerous decision to allow Google to expand into collection and manipulation of health data
WASHINGTON – The Australian competition regulator early today rejected Google’s attempt to address concerns about its planned acquisition of Fitbit by promising, among other things, not to use health data for advertising. Australia’s move contrasts with the European Commission’s decision last week to accept similar promises by Google and to clear the merger. In tandem, the decisions raise the stakes for the U.S. Justice Department’s upcoming decision on whether to block the deal.
In response, Open Markets Institute released the following statement:
“The Open Markets Institute applauds the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and its chair, Rod Sims, for rejecting Google's proffered behavioral conditions related to its proposed acquisition of Fitbit. Such conditions cannot cure the deal’s defects. Google cannot be trusted. The recent lawsuit by U.S. states against Google regarding ad tech monopolization contains allegations that Google violated similar promises it made to antitrust enforcers to get clearance for its DoubleClick acquisition. Enforcers should not be fooled again.
“Australia’s action stands in brave contrast to last week’s decision by the European Commission to approve Google’s takeover of Fitbit. Open Markets believes the European Commission made a fundamental political error by not fixing Google’s existing threats to European democracy, society, and business before approving any new deals. The Fitbit acquisition would allow Google to acquire sensitive health data and combine it with the dossiers it keeps on every individual, and to use that data to discriminate in the provision of health insurance and health care and in the marketing of a vast variety of related goods and services. Google will also be able to use that data to target and displace important European businesses.
“Open Markets calls on the governments of France, Germany, the Netherlands, and other nations that have opposed Google’s takeover of Fitbit to demand that EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager reverse her office’s shortsighted and dangerous decision. And we call on the U.S. Justice Department to block the deal outright.”
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Sally Hubbard, director of enforcement strategy at Open Markets Institute and a former antitrust enforcer at the New York Attorney’s General Office, is available for interview about the proposed acquisition: hubbard@openmarketsinstitute.org
Barry Lynn, executive director of Open Markets Institute, is also available to provide expertise on the deal: lynn@openmarketsinstitute.org