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Discussion on: Are we Developers helping Google to build an unstoppable monopoly?

 
bgadrian profile image
Adrian B.G.

It is a market, ruled by business rules. Only when the market shares switch, new players enter or exit serious impact can be seen.

For example Google Maps APIs got serious expensive, a new/old maps competitor will step in and make friendly APIs and businesses will adopt it, but it takes years.

And I am sure that things will NOT change soon, we just need viable alternatives.

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danielw profile image
Daniel Waller (he/him)

The problem is that Google have positioned themselves as the gatekeeper to all other kinds of services.
Even if there are better services available from a consumer perspective, if Google chooses to bury that competitor in their search results, a company can't generate the traffic it needs to keep the lights on.

And that's not a hypothetical. They have been accused of doing that in the past to competing platforms like Yelp, Getty Images, and an array of vertical search platforms.

I feel that it's very hard to view Google as a private company in an open market nowadays. Their services have in some instances advanced to a point where a majority of people take them for granted like public infrastructure.