Google found guilty of creating search monopoly, US judge rules

A US Federal District judge on Monday dealt a blow to Alphabet’s Google, finding the tech behemoth guilty of violating US antitrust laws to become the world’s default search engine.

“Google is a monopolist,” declared US Judge Amit Mehta in his landmark ruling in Washington, DC courts. This ruling paved the way for the possibility of US lawmakers breaking up Google's big tech dominance over the online search market.

Mehta says that Google spent billions of dollars over the years to maintain its illegal stronghold over the search market, stifling competition by creating an atmosphere where rivals essentially stopped trying to even compete with the tech giant.

The “United States v. Google” lawsuit – originally filed by the Trump administration in 2020 – argued that the company sought out exclusive agreements with tech developers, carriers, and equipment makers to hold its top position as the world’s most used search engine.

“Sure, users can access Google's rivals by switching the default search access point or by downloading a rival search app or browser. But the market reality is that users rarely do so.” the judge said in his 277-page ruling on the case, which first came on the docket last November.

For example in 2021, Google paid over $26 billion to make sure it was the default search engine on smartphones and browsers, covering about 90 to 95 percent of the market.

“This victory against Google is an historic win for the American people,” said US Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said about the final ruling.

“No company – no matter how large or influential – is above the law” he said.

Justice Department Statements on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia’s Decision in U.S. v Google

🔗: https://t.co/Dj7Xbwz6Yy pic.twitter.com/kzJfWlNWk7

undefined U.S. Department of Justice (@TheJusticeDept) August 5, 2024

The DC judge further said that by maintaining its underhanded advantage, Google fundamentally “reduced the incentive to invest and innovate in search” to maintain its profit margin, knowing that losing its Safari default "would result in a significant drop in queries and billions of dollars in lost revenues.”

“Google has not achieved market dominance by happenstance,” Mehta declared, noting Google’s shrewd business strategy, which includes hiring thousands of highly skilled engineers and constant innovation helped to maintain its dominance.

“Google has no true competitor”

The win is the first of its kind and legally could pave the way for a second trial for the US government to decide how it wants to handle the aftermath, which could force Alphabet to divest its search assets.

Alphabet on Monday said it would appeal Mehta's decision, guaranteeing the case will most likely drag on through 2025, if not longer.

"This decision recognizes that Google offers the best search engine, but concludes that we shouldn’t be allowed to make it easily available," Google said in a statement.

Fallout from the decision could change the landscape of the online advertising world, antitrust enforcers say.

And it is expected to lead to more court filings aimed at reducing the power wielded by big tech companies, a quest US lawmakers have banded together about across both sides of the aisle.

“This landmark decision holds Google accountable. It paves the path for innovation for generations to come and protects access to information for all Americans,” said US Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter.

Since the Google lawsuit was filed four years ago, US antitrust regulators have also sued Meta Platforms, Amazon.com, and Apple for maintaining illegal monopolies.