The US Department of Justice is reportedly investigating Google Maps over concerns that Google’s policies for the service could give it an unfair advantage over potential competitors.
Reuters says the DOJ’s investigation focuses on the restrictions Google places on vehicle manufacturers and software developers looking to use Google Maps in their products. A source reportedly told Reuters that those policies mean “car companies are prevented from, for example, mixing Google Maps with voice assistants developed by smaller rivals.”
The Justice Department is also “looking at Google’s requirement that if a website or app uses one Google technology, say Google’s location search, the website or app developer cannot use maps or other technologies developed by Google’s rivals,” Reuters says.
The first policy can help Google Assistant, Google Play, and other services make their way onto more infotainment systems; the second policy can make Google Maps itself more popular. The question is whether these arrangements make it more difficult for other services to compete.
That’s what the DOJ is looking to answer. Reuters says “there is no sign that the department’s staff investigating Google Maps have recommended whether to sue,” however, and even if it does it could take years for the lawsuit to make its way into a courtroom.
Google didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
