US v. Google: all the news from the search antitrust showdown
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Summary
Federal Judge Amit Mehta ruled that Google is a search monopoly, and also maintained that the company had ‘acted as one to maintain its monopoly’ in a ruling handed down on the 5th of August 2024.
Now, both Google and the Department of Justice are fighting over the ruling and what to do about the company and its products in the aftermath of the ruling.
The DOJ has argued that Google had struck anti-competitive deals with Apple and other companies to give its search engine prime placement, and that one option to resolve this situation would be to break up Google’s products, including Chrome, Search and Android.
Late last week, Google filed a motion with the DOJ asking to participate in the penalty phase of the DOJ’s antitrust case, as the potential penalties could include a multi-year ban on Google’s lucrative exclusive deals.
Apple also wants to ensure it has a voice in the remedies trial for the Justice Department’s search monopolization case against Google, and already found Google liable for illegal monopolization in the general search market.