In 2019, Google cut almost half of its lobbying spending than in 2018, as the government has been increasingly investigating tech companies in Washington and all over the country.
A filing was recently released which showed that Google was the only company among the big four tech giants that have been going through inspection due to lower trust level, which reduced its year-over-year spending.
The overall spending by the tech companies has only increased except for Google. In 2018, Google spent $11.8 million and last year a 44% decrease was noticed. Whereas, Facebook spent $16.7 million in 2018 and the next year there was a 32% increase in it. Amazon’s total spending was $16.1 million which had a 14% increase and Apple with $7.4 million spending in 2018, also increased their spending by 10%.
Justice Department and 50 attorneys general throughout the country are inquiring Google regarding antitrust. The company had to pay a $170 million settlement when YouTube was questioned by the Federal Trade Commission in 2019 about the violation of child privacy laws.
Google is the prominent business unit of Alphabet and is therefore accountable for all the revenues and profits earned. In the last quarter of 2019, it lobbied on online child safety, the privacy of mobile location, encryption standards and others.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Google fired around six firms that represented around half of its lobbying bills, which resulted in a clear reduction in spending. It happened after several changes in the government affairs and policy operations of Google.
However, Facebook amplified its year-over-year spending the most, although it also is facing a federal antitrust probe from FTC and a state-level probe by almost 47 attorneys general all over the country.
Last year, Facebook had an engaging approach as CEO, Mark Zuckerberg had private meetings with lawmakers for tech regulations and openly discussing the cryptocurrency plan of the company. In the last quarter, it lobbied the government on encryption, content policy, integrity etc.
Just like Facebook, Amazon also had a similar amount of increment in its lobbying spending and faces an antitrust probe from the FTC. The company lobbied in the fourth quarter on facial recognition technology, cloud computing and other related issues.
The antitrust scrutiny faced by Apple is about the App Store and about the encryption devices from the Justice Department. In the fourth quarter, it lobbied the government on music licensing issues, mobile payments and more.
Read next: Does Big Tech Have Too Much Power? [Infographic]
A filing was recently released which showed that Google was the only company among the big four tech giants that have been going through inspection due to lower trust level, which reduced its year-over-year spending.
The overall spending by the tech companies has only increased except for Google. In 2018, Google spent $11.8 million and last year a 44% decrease was noticed. Whereas, Facebook spent $16.7 million in 2018 and the next year there was a 32% increase in it. Amazon’s total spending was $16.1 million which had a 14% increase and Apple with $7.4 million spending in 2018, also increased their spending by 10%.
Justice Department and 50 attorneys general throughout the country are inquiring Google regarding antitrust. The company had to pay a $170 million settlement when YouTube was questioned by the Federal Trade Commission in 2019 about the violation of child privacy laws.
Google is the prominent business unit of Alphabet and is therefore accountable for all the revenues and profits earned. In the last quarter of 2019, it lobbied on online child safety, the privacy of mobile location, encryption standards and others.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Google fired around six firms that represented around half of its lobbying bills, which resulted in a clear reduction in spending. It happened after several changes in the government affairs and policy operations of Google.
However, Facebook amplified its year-over-year spending the most, although it also is facing a federal antitrust probe from FTC and a state-level probe by almost 47 attorneys general all over the country.
Last year, Facebook had an engaging approach as CEO, Mark Zuckerberg had private meetings with lawmakers for tech regulations and openly discussing the cryptocurrency plan of the company. In the last quarter, it lobbied the government on encryption, content policy, integrity etc.
Just like Facebook, Amazon also had a similar amount of increment in its lobbying spending and faces an antitrust probe from the FTC. The company lobbied in the fourth quarter on facial recognition technology, cloud computing and other related issues.
The antitrust scrutiny faced by Apple is about the App Store and about the encryption devices from the Justice Department. In the fourth quarter, it lobbied the government on music licensing issues, mobile payments and more.
Read next: Does Big Tech Have Too Much Power? [Infographic]
