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Google Loses Huge Antitrust Case Over Search

Google’s Big Legal Loss

Google is set to appeal a recent court ruling where U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta found that the company broke antitrust laws to keep its search engine dominant. This ruling is a major setback for Google and might change how it does business and even affect how the internet works.

Judge Mehta’s Decision

Judge Mehta decided that Google used its power unfairly by paying big companies like Apple, Samsung, and Mozilla to make Google the default search engine on their devices and browsers. In 2021, Google spent $26 billion to be the default search engine on Apple and Android devices. About $18 billion of this went to Apple. The government says this prevented other search engines from growing and competing effectively.

Background of the Case

The case started in 2020 when the Justice Department and 38 states accused Google of blocking competitors like Bing and DuckDuckGo. They claim Google has about 90% of the search market, a figure Google disputes.

Google’s Reaction

Google plans to appeal the ruling. Kent Walker, Google’s President of Global Affairs, argues that the company’s success comes from offering the best search engine, which users prefer. He believes the ruling wrongly suggests that Google shouldn’t be allowed to make its top-quality search engine easily available.

Impact on Other Tech Cases

This ruling could affect other major tech companies like Apple, Meta, and Amazon. It may set a new standard for how antitrust laws are applied to big tech companies.

What Happens Next

Judge Mehta has not yet decided what changes Google might have to make. Possible outcomes include changes to Google’s search operations or even selling parts of its business. The situation might be similar to the Microsoft antitrust case from the 1990s, where a breakup order was overturned on appeal, but Microsoft still had to follow certain rules.

The final result of Google’s case could impact how other tech companies are regulated and could affect ongoing antitrust lawsuits.