U.S. asks Google for detailed search data in antitrust case

Department of Justice investigating whether search giant is a monopoly

The U.S. government asked Google to fork over granular information on how its search engine works and makes money, seeking to prove that the internet giant is a monopoly.

The U.S. Department of Justice and several state attorneys general are seeking comparable data on U.S. search results and related ads from Feb. 2, 2015 to Feb. 8, 2015 and from Feb. 3, 2020 to Feb. 9, 2020, according to a legal filing Monday.

The Alphabet Inc. unit is being asked to share data on how and where users searched in those periods, the quantity of different types of ads, revenue from those ads and what the underlying bids were for them, among other details. The government told the company it wants the information within 30 days.

The request suggests the DOJ wants to compare how Google presented search results and ads six years ago versus one year ago. That could help the government understand how the company’s grip on the search market evolved over time.

The Justice Department under former U.S. President Donald Trump and 11 Republican attorneys general originally filed the suit.

Three other states have since joined, including California, the site of Google’s headquarters. The latest data request shows the government is pressing ahead under a new administration led by Democrat Joe Biden.

Google has said the government’s requests are too broad.