The US government is investigating whether Google engages in "tying" — the practice of bundling different products together to block out competitors — reported Bloomberg on Thursday. The investigation is part of a larger antitrust case the US government's Department of Justice is building against Google. Bloomberg reported that authorities have asked executives of Google's rival companies about pricing and operations of Google's network division. The inquiries reportedly focus on establishing whether Google pushes advertisers and publishers to use only its products by offering them discounts or special features, thereby blocking out competitors. Regulators are interested in understanding how Google's online search business interacts with its network division to increase its share of the digital advertisements market, reported Bloomberg. The US Department of Justice and a group of attorneys general are currently working on bringing an antitrust lawsuit against Google in the coming weeks. However, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier this month that some of the lawyers working on the investigation thought the case needed more as they still had to to sift through millions of pages of documents to find the evidence needed to win in court. Google controls much of digital advertisement market Last month, a House subcommittee on antitrust heard from the CEOs of Big Tech companies Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google. During Google CEO Sundar Pichai's deposition, Representative Pramila Jayapal pointed out that the company controls 50-60% of the ad exchange market. And, by controlling middlemen like Google's Display & Video 360 (DV360) and Google…
