DOJ's antitrust chief lays out Big Tech evaluation road map

The top Justice Department official in charge of antitrust on Tuesday laid out more details of how he is evaluating competition in digital markets.

Why it matters: DOJ and the Federal Trade Commission have already divided up who would have authority to examine the major tech firms for competition violations. DOJ has reportedly claimed Google and Apple.

What they’re saying: “While antitrust is not a panacea for every policy challenge presented by the digital market, the Antitrust Division will not shrink from the critical work of investigating and challenging anticompetitive conduct and transactions where justified,” said Makan Delrahim, who leads the division, during a speech in Israel.

• Delrahim gave examples of the kinds of behavior that could raise concerns among antitrust enforcers, including exclusivity deals and some mergers.
• He also framed the discussion in terms of companies accused of monopolistic practices by the government, like Microsoft and Standard Oil.

Go deeper: Read Delrahim's full remarks.