Federal Court Rules Google Holds Illegal Search Monopoly
A federal judge finds that Google violates antitrust law by illegally maintaining its dominance in the search engine market through exclusive deals. The tech giant immediately appeals the landmark decision.
A federal judge rules that Google holds an illegal monopoly over the search engine market, marking a historic victory for the Department of Justice. The court finds that Google violates Section 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act by using its massive dominance to secure exclusive default search agreements with mobile device makers, carriers, and browser vendors like Apple.
The DOJ originally files this landmark lawsuit in October 2020, and the trial takes place in the fall of 2023 under Judge Amit Mehta. In August 2024, Judge Mehta officially concludes that Google unlawfully maintains its monopoly by paying billions of dollars to ensure its search engine remains the default option on most smartphones and web browsers.
Google immediately appeals the ruling, setting the stage for a lengthy legal battle that legal experts expect to last for several years. This case stands as the most significant federal antitrust action against a major technology company since the landmark government case against Microsoft in the late 1990s.