Google Compared to the Government

There is an article in the NY Times today talking about Google and its various legal battles. Google isn't shy about proclaiming it wants to "establish a body of legal interpretation that favors the company" and the article makes clear there is little that can be done to stop it. But what is really telling is the lenghts Google will go to stay out of court for fear of the discovery phase could reveal a good deal about Google's propreitary technology, or inner workings.

The most telling quote, however, comes from David A. Milman, the chief executive of Rescuecom who sued Google over trademark infringement and lost. He says:

“People say you can’t fight the government. Google, in this case, is very similar to the government. They’re the government of the Internet.”

Also sounds a bit like Disney: a country unto itself. Has its own rules, its own regulations and even its own currency. People fight and lose, even when people are clearly in the right.