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Hagens Berman announced it has filed a nationwide antitrust class-action lawsuit against Google claiming the company illegally monopolized, and financially and creatively stagnated the American market of internet and mobile search. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges that Google's monopoly of these markets stems from the company's purchasing of Android mobile operating system (Android OS) to maintain and expand its monopoly by pre-loading its own suite of applications onto the devices by way of secret Mobile Application Distribution Agreements (MADA). According to the suit, these agreements were hidden and marked to be viewed only by attorneys. According to the suit, Google's role in placing this suite of apps, including Google Play, and YouTube, among others, has hampered the market and kept the price of devices made by competing device manufactures like Samsung and HTC artificially high. The complaint claims that if device manufacturers bound by Google's distribution agreements were free to choose a default search engine other than Google, the overall quality of Internet search would improve. The complaint notes that Google's monopoly not only suppresses its competition but also keeps the company itself from improving. According to the lawsuit, Google's MADAs are contracts in restraint of trade that are designed to maintain and extend its monopolies in general search and handheld general search. The lawsuit claims Google is in violation of a variety of federal and state antitrust laws, including the Sherman Act, the Clayton Antitrust Act, California Cartwright Act and California Unfair Competition Law. The named plaintiffs include Gary Feitelson, a resident of Louisville, Kentucky and owner of an HTC EVO 3D mobile phone, and Daniel McKee, a resident of Des Moines, Iowa and owner of a Samsung Galaxy S III mobile phone. According to the complaint, in both situations, the owners' phones should have cost less and had better search capabilities as the result of competition that would have ensued, had Google's MADA restraints not existed. The lawsuit seeks to represent all U.S. purchasers of any Android OS mobile telephone or tablet as to which Google and the manufacturer of such device has entered into a contract or contracts, including the MADA, by which Google has conditioned the right to pre-load any application from a suite of Google applications on to manufacturer's mandatory acceptance. The lawsuit seeks damages for individuals who have purchased these devices at an artificially high price due to Google's alleged price-fixing, anticompetitive restrictions.

The European Commission announced Motorola Mobility - which Google is selling to China's Lenovo - has abused its market position in Europe by refusing to grant crucial technology licenses to rival Apple, then suing Apple for infringement. However, the Commission's antitrust chief, Joaquin Almunia, said Tuesday that he would not levy any fine this time, because European national laws have issued conflicting rulings in patent and licensing suits. Almunia is seeking to compel smartphone technology giants to license patents on reasonable terms, rather than using them as a tool to stymie competition. He said recent court battles around the world ultimately hinder innovation and harm consumers. In a related case, Samsung also avoided a fine for denying use of patents to Apple, by agreeing to submit future disagreements to arbitration.

Tech Data Corporation announced an agreement with Google Inc. to distribute Google's Chromebook management console to its channel of solution providers in the U.S. through the company's Systems & Peripherals(IT) division. Through the agreement, Tech Data now offers the complete portfolio of technology for Google Chromebooks available on hardware from leading manufactures such as Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo and Samsung. Tech Data will also provide additional value-added services and training for solution providers. The Chromebook management console is a value-add to solution providers seeking to customize user features, configure networks, track and manage user access--all within a secure network environment. By way of the agreement, Tech Data will provide white glove services and support for solution providers and their end user customers such as pre-sales consultation, deployment services and a virtual concierge for additional technical support. Chromebooks, combined with the management console, provide a comprehensive solution to enhance student learning and seamless access to technology. The web-based management console makes it easy for schools to configure and manage a set of Chromebooks across a school, district or country.