Yelp files antitrust suit against Google, claiming it stifles competition

By Mike Murphy

Yelp Inc. took its long-simmering feud with Google to the next level Wednesday, filing an antitrust lawsuit against the tech giant and accusing it of using its dominant position to crush competition.

The suit, filed in federal court in the Northern District of California, claims Alphabet's (GOOG) (GOOGL) Google engaged in "anticompetitive practices designed to monopolize the markets for local search services and local search advertising."

The San Francisco-based online review site has long accused Google of unfairly scraping its content, and Google received a slap on the wrist from the Federal Trade Commission in 2013 after being accused of "search bias," or manipulating its algorithms to promote its own content.

In a blog post Wednesday, Yelp (YELP) co-founder and Chief Executive Jeremy Stoppelman said Google is "putting its heavy thumb on the scale to stifle competition and keep consumers within its own walled garden."

"Google should not be both the monopoly provider of general search results and the self-preferencing curator of its own local search content. That's the equivalent of being both the judge and a competitor in the same Olympic event," Stoppelman wrote. "Over time, this sabotages local search competitors' ability to continue offering superior products, diminishing choice for consumers and advertisers."

"Yelp's claims are not new," a Google spokesperson said in a statement Wednesday. "Similar claims were thrown out years ago by the FTC, and recently by the judge in the DOJ's case. On the other aspects of the decision to which Yelp refers, we are appealing. Google will vigorously defend against Yelp's meritless claims."

The lawsuit came weeks after Google lost a huge federal antitrust case that found its search-engine dominance constituted a monopoly, which could result in the eventual breakup of the company.

Yelp shares are down about 27% year to date, while Alphabet stock is up around 17% in 2024.

-Mike Murphy

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08-28-24 2053ET

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