Megan Gray @megangrA Twitter profile | Pikagi

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Megan Gray

@megangrA

2,399

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500

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GrayMatters Law & Policy | Past: DuckDuckGo, FTC, BigLaw | Affiliate/Advisor: @stanfordCIS , @EFF @CenDemTech | #VoteHarris

Washington, DC

Joined April 2012

Don't wanna be here? Send us removal request.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

2 months

What does Biden really think about TikTok? It's an enigma wrapped in a riddle wrapped in a puzzle! Don't ask Joe, he's rehearsed his lines -- watch Dark Brandon! He'll break the fourth wall to protect the fourth estate. He'll go through the motions, but...

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@cgray91

@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

“Since 2014, cars download and store all text messages on smartphones when they are connected to the system. The car companies then sell the texts to data brokers.”

@wbm312

Whitney Merrill

9 months

Cars continue to be a privacy nightmare: Court rules automakers can record and intercept owner text messages

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

I shit you not. Today at Google Search antitrust trial, DOJ called as witness Microsoft executive Jonathan Tinter, VP Biz Dev in charge of search deals. “Mr. Tinter, are you familiar w the term ‘search engine defaults’?” Long pause. “Maybe.”

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

Wow. Well we just learned why Google Search has deteriorated so much but I’m not sure if anyone listening to this trial testimony realizes it yet.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Google is controlling the trial w/ its secrecy designations, controlling our searches w/ its greed, and controlling Wired w/ its scare tactics. I wrote an op-ed re Google mucking around w/ organic search to make it more shopping-oriented to gin up ad $. I stand by that. My 🧵

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

Google executive who negotiated Apple default deal for $ billions… takes job as Apple executive, without objection from Google or any effort to establish wall inside Apple to protect Google confidential info/strategy. Internal email says “our vision is to act as one company.”

@superwuster

Tim Wu

11 months

More I think about Google antitrust more I think DoJ has them dead to rights caught splitting a market with Apple for $18 billion a year

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

I haven't seen any reporting on this, but at the tail end of the Google Search antitrust trial on Friday, two extraordinary (but brief) discussions with the judge. I'd be steamed about this even as a disinterested person. 1/ Google insists on keeping sealed...

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

3 months

BAM. Epic v Apple, w Apple on the back foot

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

Monopoly Man shadowing Google’s General Counsel Kent Walker out of antitrust trial.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

How exactly is the Google Search antitrust trial "secret"? Let me count the ways. For the first several weeks, the trial was mostly closed to the public, literally conducted behind locked doors. After media outcry, that changed and the trial is now mostly open. But..

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

2 months

update in Epic Games v. Apple The judge isn't letting up the pressure on Apple. She has referred the case to Judge Hixon to dive DEEPER on Apple's failure to produce documents. She has HAD IT.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

5 months

Apple decision letter dated Saturday, March 2. Epic blog and publicity on Tuesday, March 6. Oh to be fly on that wall, must have been a crazy few days. I can't comprehend Apple's strategy, surely they must have known they were walking into a buzzsaw.

@lutherlowe

Luther Lowe

5 months

This is INSANE. Apple has killed Epic’s developer account as retaliation over @TimSweeneyEpic ’s tweets.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

its market share numbers of searches conducted via a certain access point (e.g., home screen widget). It's AN ANTITRUST CASE, Google should not be able to shield this. At minimum, a range should be publicly revealed (e.g., 15-25%). Judge allows secrecy. 2/ Google insists on..

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

Google lawyers’ decision to call Sundar Pichai as witness will go down in history as a devastatingly bad decision. He offered no testimony that particularly helped Google, but he gave impression to judge that he wasn’t credible, and he actually bolstered DOJ/states’ case. I’m…

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

3 months

ouch "An Apple spokesperson requested to speak off the record about browser choice screens. When WIRED declined and asked for an on-the-record comment, all further requests for an interview went unanswered."

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Why Apple’s iPhone Browser-Choice Option Sucks

European iPhone owners are being shown a new pop-up screen listing alternatives to the Safari browser. The developers of the browsers shown on that screen are torn about the user experience.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

“I don’t want any buck passing.”That’s Judge Donato, telling Google in no uncertain terms that Google GC Kent Walker better show up tomorrow at 3PM and address the litigation hold, deleted chats, and fake privilege situation.

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Epic v. Google: everything we’re learning live in Fortnite court

The jury ruled in Epic’s favor.

www.theverge.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

keeping sealed some market share data FROM A THIRD PARTY. A third party calculated something related to Google market share. As far as I can tell, this unnamed third party IS NOT REQUESTING SECRECY. I don't understand how Google even has standing to request this. Oh also...

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

1 month

Judge says Google sucks. More to the point, that Google destroyed evidence in the Epic Games case and its lawyer Kent Walker didn’t give a damn.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Google demanded Wired take down my op-ed, pointing to a single page I saw in court for only a few seconds. Wired sent it to me, and I said I needed to see all the pages shown in open court. Google didn't send. Without speaking with me, Wired deleted my op-ed.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

At trial, we've learned the Google Search Team and Google Ad Team work together to secretly boost commercial queries - that degrades the user experience and triggers more ad auctions and thus revenue. Google isn't really contesting this.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

making inferences as to the other competitors." This is simply insufficient for redactions or sealing. People might THINK, oh no! They might INFER, lawd save us!

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

It would be hard for them to refute given the damning evidence. You don't have to believe me -- read this, And for context, so you know the job duties of the folks on that email chain, .

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Emails Show Google Search & Ad Execs Working Together To Increase Ad Revenue

United States antitrust lawsuit uncovers scheme by Google Search, Chrome and Ads execs to increase ad revenues

www.searchenginejournal.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

5 months

antitrust class action lawsuit against Apple "Apple Unlawfully Ties iCloud to Its Mobile Devices by Arbitrarily Restricting Access to Alternative Cloud Storage Platforms"

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Complaint – #1 in Gamboa v. Apple Inc. (N.D. Cal., 5:24-cv-01270) – CourtListener.com

CLASS ACTION COMPLAINT FOR VIOLATIONS OF THE SHERMAN ACT AND CLAYTON ACT DEMAND FOR JURY TRIAL against Apple Inc., (Filing Fee: $405.00, receipt number ACANDC-19178210). Filed by Julianna Felix...

www.courtlistener.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Just Friday, a witness testified about a Google "experiment" where the company deliberately made its search results worse (WORSE!) to see if that would impact its traffic. The experiment ran for weeks or months without any negative impact for Google, he said.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

The plaintiff class is represented by powerhouse Boies Schiller (yes, David Boies who DOJ hired as trial counsel in Microsoft antitrust case). And the most damning evidence will be that Google KNEW, for YEARS, that most users were misled by Google's false claims.

@jason_kint

Jason Kint

10 months

While eyes are on Google's first of four major antitrust trials, there is also a G "Incognito" privacy trial starting in January and the evidence G is trying to exclude is super interesting. The GDPR, data protection, adtech, antitrust folks will want to see these imho... 1/4

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

Hard to believe Google is this tone-deaf but I swear this actually happened today at the Google Search antitrust trial: during cross-examination, the Google lawyer tried to impeach the DOJ expert (Prof. Rangel) by pointing out that he hasn’t been a paid expert in other cases!

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

2 months

I’m persistently bewildered as to why no one (anywhere in the world) has investigated LinkedIn. And I’m irritated that every month I have pay an extortionate $50 to get a minor amount of privacy on the platform. “While most people think a LinkedIn...

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Economic Termites Are Everywhere

Why is this economy so difficult to manage? The macro statistics are hiding the experience of being cheated.

www.thebignewsletter.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

2 years

Whoa! BOOM! Twitter’s third party privacy audit!! Why did FTC pproduce it in response to FOIA from ⁦ @leah_nylen ⁩ but not from ⁦ @b_fung ⁩?

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Twitter Auditors Missed Security Lapses Whistleblower Later Called ‘Egregious’

A previously undisclosed government-ordered audit of Twitter Inc.’s privacy and data controls missed failures later exposed by a whistleblower -- raising questions about oversight of major technology...

www.bloomberg.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

manipulation rather than my spicy shorthand of "delete and replace." But don't be fooled, Google's rebuttal isn't a slam-dunk. Sometimes I'm wrong and Google is right -- but one thing I've learned over the years is to never, ever take Google at face value.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

1 year

By Friday: 19 very large online platforms and search engines have to comply with the EU’s online content rulebook, the Digital Services Act

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Big Tech’s to-do list under new EU content rules

Large digital platforms will have to clamp down on illegal and harmful content as soon as Friday under the bloc’s content-moderation rulebook.

www.politico.eu

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Bottom line, even if semantic matching is a red herring, my op-ed is still solid for its central point. Google Search team and Google Ad team are working together to turn non-commercial queries into commercial queries, which hurts users and advertisers, but makes Google richer.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

Google's justification for keeping this number under wraps is weak sauce. "The number is percentage...a third-party number that purports to represent the % of ads placed through Google's tool of the entire market....Indirectly it is info about Google, and indirectly some info...

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

1 year

impressively deep dive into FTC regulation of AI

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The FTC Is Regulating AI: A Comprehensive Analysis | Insights | Holland & Knight

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Maybe Google didn't fiddle with queries via "semantic matching" or delete/replace queries outright, but the trial shows Google is doing something to convert non-commercial queries to commercial queries.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Lordy Tinter just testified that he didn’t know if Brad Smith is the president of Microsoft.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

Galling is the fact that the Google Search monopoly helped to decimate the news media. As a result, they no longer have the budget/bandwidth to regularly file motions and appeals to regularly and robustly educate judges about why open access is so necessary for a healthy society.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Here are some horrendous redactions in the Google Search antitrust trial. These are just a few from TODAY, from DOJ’s own expert witness testimony. 1/ The 2014 (more than ten years ago) search default in Firefox change from Google to Yahoo - REDACT % loss of query traffic

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

Finally! Bill Cavanaugh (state) asking the ultimate questions and putting the screws to Google CEO. Pretty hard to have any conclusion other than that Google paid all these $$ billions to Apple as payola for Apple to not build rival search engine.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

7 months

I found these placards in my closet. I had been lead FTC counsel in the privacy case against Google for tricky Safari tracking. Once the ink was dry on the settlement, I had these made for everyone on the team (DPIP, tech staff, economist, etc.). For bureaucratic reasons, it...

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

Google VP testified today (according to news reports, I wasn't there) that, in contrast to DuckDuckGo, Google must track user IP addresses to detect botnet attacks on Google. Malarkey. DDG does just fine detecting botnets without tracking users.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Reading Google's lengthy explanation of that single page, , I agree I may have misunderstood it and I would have revised the op-ed if given a chance to take out the "kids clothes" example. And I would've attributed Google with more sophisticated...

@searchliaison

Google SearchLiaison

10 months

An opinion piece recently appeared stating that Google “just flat out deletes queries and replaces them with ones that monetize better.” We don’t. The piece contains serious inaccuracies about how Google Search works. The organic (IE: non-sponsored) results you see in Search are

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

This morning, Judge Mehta conducted trial business in private chambers w the lead attorneys. This is impermissible shirking of the requirement for public court proceedings. Did DOJ even object? Presumably, in this secret meeting, the judge and the lawyers discussed the posting…

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Just posted, Google and DOJ status report on posting of PUBLIC trial exhibits in antitrust case. Ironically, Google states a mysterious third party also wants a delay in posting (cough, APPLE). Tied at the hip, these two. They shall henceforth be known as Goople.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

1 year

I’m sure nothing will go wrong with plan. 🙄

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Google strikes deal with Mayo Clinic to comb patient records using generative AI

“Doctors are still waiting for AI to help us. I’m still sending faxes."

www.statnews.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

how did I miss this? Last week, the FCC issued NPR proposing to “ban the practice of obtaining a single consumer consent as grounds for delivering calls and text messages from multiple marketers on subjects beyond the scope of the original consent.”

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FCC Proposes Rule to “Close the Lead Generator Loophole,” with Business-Changing Ramifications

Last week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing to “ban the practice of obtaining a single consumer consent as grounds for delivering calls...

www.jdsupra.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

2 months

🙀I hadn't considered this possibility -- the Apple 30% tax on ChatGPT+ Apple/iPhone integration with ChatGPT upgrade "will likely operate on the same terms of every other digital goods sale on iOS, with OpenAI forced to share 30% of the take with Apple." h/t @edzitron

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

I can't conceive how Google does this without modifying the query -- and that "semantic match" powerpoint (which was more than 1 page) seems to hold the key. It's alchemy. They turn a non-commercial query into $$$.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

This is evidence of Apple’s knowledge of anticompetitive behavior. “We looked at earnings calls in the 10 years prior to the lawsuit, and Apple never once mentioned this Google relationship or massive Google payment,” said Bernstein tech analyst…”

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Google pays Apple billions a year to use its search engine. Now executives must testify.

Lucrative, closed-door dealings between Apple and Google are under scrutiny at an antitrust trial in Washington, as senior Apple executives take the stand.

www.washingtonpost.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Friday, Judge Mehta displayed a flash of anger when the media lawyer, respectfully, disagreed with him & explained why his legal reasoning was incorrect. Know why this chaps my hide? Mehta hasn't EVER shown a similar level of anger, not even when justified. Not when Google...

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

There's still alot of unusual things happening that prevent the press from reporting on the case and the public from understanding. #1 We don't have a witness list or schedule. For example, DOJ won't tell journalists who is expected to testify tomorrow.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

1 year

Never a good idea to try to slide something by your users via a Privacy Policy or Terms of Service update, especially if transparency and trust are your values. Technical legal compliance is insufficient in real world.

@sharongoldman

Sharon Goldman

1 year

NEW: @Zoom is facing severe backlash for changes it quietly made to its Terms of Service back in March related to AI — raising new questions about customer privacy, choice and trust.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

Google's main expert got utterly excoriated very recently by a respected federal judge. No story about him should fail to include this information. @courtlistener is down for me right now so I can't include link, but here's the case....

@BigTechOnTrial

Big Tech on Trial

@BigTechOnTrial

9 months

Today in #USvGoogle we’ve heard testimony from Google’s expert economic witness Dr. Mark Israel. Dr. Israel summarized his testimony into six high-level opinions: 1) Plaintiffs improperly combine distinct user search products that belong in separate markets and thus define away

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

I have no beef with Google employees themselves, my takeaway from this exhibit is that Google management is manipulating them as much as they are the users.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

Then, the Google lawyer asked him a series of questions that boiled down to this: because Prof. Rangel hasn’t done any consulting work for BigTech or Silicon Valley moneybags, he must not be very good at his job!

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

When a party, especially a sophisticated party like Google, foundationally subverts the American legal system and prevents a judge from doing their job, that is when -- I've found -- judges get livid. That this judge has not..... concerns me.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

28 days

I clench my teeth every time I drive by this Apple billboard. The company KNOWS most people don’t distinguish between browser and search engine. It’s disingenuous to promote a browser as “private” when it has Google set as default search.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

4 months

Rep. MATT GAETZ (R-Fla.) had nothing but praise for FTC Chair Lina Khan: “I hope her work continues in the Trump administration.” Sen. J.D. VANCE (R-Ohio) also commended Khan’s work.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

So sweet to watch Google’s lawyer get crucified by DOJ’s expert today. The Google lawyer blatantly misled the judge yesterday in stating in opening argument that it takes only two clicks to change search engine on Android.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Hey DOJ team in Google Search antitrust trial - based on Judge Mehta comments at close of trial today, you should be filing a motion pronto to unseal the improperly closed trial testimony from the Apple witness on Friday.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

According to trial testimony, Google did this under the code name Project Mercury. As stated in court, "A goal of Project Mercury was to increase commercial queries."

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

1 year

OK wait a minute. E&Y quit as Twitter's privacy assessor cuz Twitter didn't pay and cuz Twitter wouldn't cooperate. SO WHO IS TWITTER'S PRIVACY ASSESSOR NOW? I can't imagine anyone who would take on that work after E&Y quit. Which means Twitter is just....

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

If you read just one article about Google’s evidence destruction, make it this one.

@pasternack

Alex Pasternack ♼

10 months

NEW: At the center of Google’s antitrust trial are a "remarkable" number of deleted employee chat messages. But a bunch of chats weren’t fully deleted, and they help reveal what’s missing and why, how Google manages its own privacy—& the power of defaults

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

3 months

Google overpaid Apple for the search default. Google undercharge Apple for cloud services. All by billions. Shouldn’t antitrust enforcers be looking at the big picture? Or are we assuming they already did and thought no problem?

@megangrA

Megan Gray

3 months

As of 2021, Apple was Google's largest corporate customer for cloud storage. Still true?

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

FWIW Tinter was Microsoft’s point person for making nice w Google under the companies’ appeasement pact.

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Google and Microsoft agree to start suing each other again

The tech giants end five years of quietly settling their differences.

arstechnica.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

improve the commercial experience." PS -- journos, push DOJ to post Exhibit DX142. I haven't seen it myself, it was only discussed in court.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

“The Epic v. Google trial may come down to simple v. complicated In opening statements, Google tried to outline the goals of its Android business. Epic focused on painting the tech giant as a bully.”

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The Epic v. Google trial may come down to simple v. complicated

But we’ll see if Epic’s opening holds up.

www.theverge.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Great thread. 💯💯💯

@doctorow

Cory Doctorow NONCONSENSUAL BLUE TICK

10 months

The biggest factor is *secrecy*: blocking recording in court, refusing to livestream the proceedings, allowing accused corporate criminals to clear the courtroom when their executives take the stand, and redacting or suppressing the exhibits: 14/

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Surprising no one, BigTech produces privacy audits to the FTC that are radically different than its internal audits.

@jason_kint

Jason Kint

2 years

Whoa. A super late Fri night unsealed doc in lawsuit Facebook is trying to settle for record $700+ million. It includes this long-hidden Sep '18 "Status and Re-scoped Approach" from the unprecedented audit Mark Zuckerberg promised Congress during Cambridge Analytica scandal. /1

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

Be still my beating heart, it seems the tide is turning! "Today, Judge Mehta criticized Google for being overly aggressive in redacting numbers in documents, including the sample size in a survey it conducted."

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

1 month

One of the least understood aspects of litigation is how cases are often won or lost based on the minutiae of document production. The hellhole of Apple's games with Epic -- demonstrating how much the Court (and Epic) have to chase because the company doesn't play fair and...

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

And in court, we heard about a 2019 document (which isn't posted, grrr) created by the Search Team (not Ads Team) re "goals for a commercial query growth OKR." That exhibit has "an example of the ways that the Search and Ads teams collaborate to grow commercial queries and

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

1 year

Actually, FB chose (& paid) Protiviti. Yes, FB's very own "independent" assessor said FB's privacy practices were shit. Imagine how horrendous FB privacy practices had to be for Protiviti to take position that it KNEW meant it would NEVER AGAIN get hired by BigTech.

@hoofnagle

Chris Hoofnagle

1 year

A few thoughts on the FTC's move on Facebook--- -First, regardless of the underlying facts, the FTC's approach probably was made possible by it ending the practice of letting respondents choose their own assessors. The assessment was done by Protiviti

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

I am so livid at what just happened re public access in the Google Search antitrust case right now that I don’t trust myself to tweet about it yet. Back later.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

"Google is exhibiting the behavior of previous generations of monopolists, with the emergence of generative AI as a good example."

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The Google Search Trial: A New Era Beckons - American Economic Liberties Project

This policy brief from the American Economic Liberties Project analyzes how the upcoming Google search antitrust trial could impact the future and commercialization of artificial intelligence...

www.economicliberties.us

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

3 months

Whoa Google gives Apple cut of Chrome iOS search revenue

@max77sabers

Max

3 months

@megangrA There's so much shady weirdness going on between Apple and Google. This one is especially crazy and weird

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

@leah_nylen thumbs, the judge didn’t even give them the opportunity to make a statement. We have been given no estimate of when the proceedings might open again. I’ve litigated dozens of access/sealing matters in the past. This is not how any of this is supposed to work. Especially…

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Be sure to read @doctorow on How Google's trial secrecy lets it control the coverage,

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

This testimony should not have been sealed in the first place. A judge should at least reprimand a party (ahem, Google) that improperly closes a trial for turns-out-not-to-be-confidential testimony. But that hasn’t happened.

@BigTechOnTrial

Big Tech on Trial

@BigTechOnTrial

11 months

issue of publicly posting exhibits quickly. He also ruled that he would be unsealing testimony about a previously admitted document that may be somewhat embarrassing to Google — but was not confidential.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

8 months

Big news! Google’s Chrome browser will have a search engine choice screen in the EU in 2024.

Google Chrome to display "choose your search engine" prompt - gHacks Tech News

Google Chrome users will soon get a "choose your search engine prompt" when they start the desktop web browser.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

Google is weirdly greedy. SO insanely rich, but still not enough. Pricing knobs to twist more money out of advertisers. Deceptive popup boxes to Chrome users who changed default to little bitty DuckDuckGo. Looking for ways to cut out Apple from rev share via Project Cinnamon...

@leah_nylen

Leah AntiTrustButVer1fy Nylen

9 months

@megangrA @KhushitaVasant Cinnamon. I spelled wrong. It was a project Google undertook to see if they could move iPhone users to stop using Safari and instead move to either Chrome or the Google Search app. (The answer was no)

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

The Twitter app icon is intentionally designed to look as if it has scratches and dust specks. This is a dark pattern prohibited the FTC. It is a technique to manipulate consumers to touch the icon in an effort to clean the phone screen, thus inadvertently opening the app.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Then a quote from that Google deck: "With Mercury, Search and Ads are working together at the onset to accelerate monetization velocity." (hint, when folks use that kind of corporate mumbo jumbo, they're trying to hide some hanky panky)

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

5 months

FTC motion to bifurcate Amazon antitrust case. Similar to Google Search case. First trial to decide liability. Later, if liability is found, discovery and trial on remedy.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

1 year

Stickers and pins from ⁦ @wbm312 ⁩ will never not make me happy

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

I feel like folks have forgotten about Google's long history of impeding government investigations. Not just me -- see I've always been impressed at how the FCC wouldn't let Google off the hook with its games.

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Google hits back at FCC over Wi-Fi data collection fine

Google has escaped a wiretap investigation, but it will keep the permanent black mark against its name for "impeding" an FCC probe, which it was fined $25,000 for.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

4 months

ICYMI, the exhibits in the Google Search trial are publicly available (MUCH more than what DOJ posted on its website) Thanks to the valiant efforts of @leah_nylen at Bloomberg. And @Capitol_Forum posted the witness transcripts,

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US v Google Antitrust Trial Transcripts I The Capitol Forum

View transcripts from the monopoly trial of US v Google, a major tech antitrust case focused on abuse of power in the search engine business.

thecapitolforum.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

Today in Google Search antitrust trial, DOJ rebuttal expert on importance of user data in search quality (Prof. Ord refuting Prof. Fox) — and he is excellent. Zero charisma but judge is hanging on every word.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

4 months

Specifics for Google Search closing argument now set. Two full days (May 2-3), with public audio line. Details here:

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Order – #890 in UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. GOOGLE LLC (D.D.C., 1:20-cv-03010) – CourtListener.com

ORDER setting the schedule for closing arguments. Closing arguments shall occur over two days, May 2 - 3, 2024, in Courtroom 10. Arguments on each day will begin at 9:00 a.m. A public access line...

www.courtlistener.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

🤯Oh the irony. Google filed a brief today in this Google Search monopoly trial, asserting that disclosure of a couple of details about inputs into its organic ranking algorithm will create “an unjustified risk to its competitive standing” because rivals could copy them.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

"Here are seven ways that Judge Mehta is allowing Google to hide the Google antitrust trial."

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Secrecy Is Systemic

Here are seven ways that Judge Mehta is allowing Google to hide the Google antitrust trial.

www.bigtechontrial.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

improperly claimed attorney-client privilege over thousands of documents, hiding them for years from DOJ/states. Not when Google improperly destroyed key evidence in violation of document preservation rules in discovery, again blindfolding DOJ/states.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Important access lesson from Google Search antitrust trial today. DO NOT DELAY in asserting your rights. The judge faulted the NYT lawyer for being patient and trying to resolve problems behind the scenes w DOJ & Google re access to exhibits and excessive redactions/sealing. Also

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

6 months

grr!!! All filed under seal, every single eff'in page, every eff'in line

@megangrA

Megan Gray

6 months

This Friday (Feb. 9) is when Google and DOJ will be filing their 500 pages (each) of Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, with post-trial briefs -- have you cleared your weekend and reordered your printer ink

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

at making the quarter is if we get an injection of at least __% ... queries ASAP from Chrome. ....our teams ... live in high cost areas... another $100K in stock price loss will not be great for morale....Are there other ranking tweaks we can push out quickly?"

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

5 months

this seems... unreal "more than 50 percent increase in Firefox user growth in Germany and close to 30 percent increase in France just since iDMA choice screen iPhone implementation"

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Brave, Mozilla, Vivaldi see browser installs rise on iOS

Thanks to Europe forcing Apple to offer a browser choice screen. Now, about ditching WebKit ...

www.theregister.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

6 months

This Friday (Feb. 9) is when Google and DOJ will be filing their 500 pages (each) of Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, with post-trial briefs -- have you cleared your weekend and reordered your printer ink

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

4 months

Thinking about antitrust remedies for BigTech, or implications for genAI being controlled by BigTech? You gotta read "Coopting Disruption" by Mark Lemley and Matthew Wansley, fantastic work (as always). The article goes deep but they helpfully wrote a blog:

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

9 months

Finally! A great article on Global Privacy Control (opt-out setting to stop online tracking) "Survey of Current Universal Opt-Out Mechanisms" Thank you @staceygraydc and Samuel Adams!

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Survey of Current Universal Opt-Out Mechanisms - Future of Privacy Forum

Several technologies can help individuals configure their devices to automatically opt out of web services’ requests to sell or share personal information for targeted advertising. Seven state...

@keir_lamont

Keir Lamont

9 months

@megangrA Me too, but more and more states kept rudely passing new laws! My colleague Sam did take a look at some of these questions in a recent post:

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

Consider this other trial exhibit, recounting the internal discussion about user queries becoming an important input into revenue, forcing the Search team to adopt new goals around monetizable query quotas.

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

11 months

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Here are the documents the Google antitrust trial judge didn’t want you to see

They’re not even plans for a new Xbox!

www.theverge.com

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@megangrA

Megan Gray

10 months

In this slide deck, isn't the gist that Google made semantic matching less precise in order to trigger more ad auctions, which ⬆️ Google $. Doesn't loosey-goosey semantic matching for keywords impact organic search results, making them lower quality --

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