The court recognized Google as a monopoly in the field of search engines, the company plans to appeal the verdict: Bloomberg
The court ruling states that Google does not have a monopoly on the general search advertising market.
In the US, a court found Google guilty of illegally monopolizing the search market through exclusive agreements. The ruling marked the government’s first major antitrust victory against the tech giant in more than two decades. informs Bloomberg.
Judge Amit Mehta in Washington noted that payments by a division of Alphabet Inc. in the amount of $26 billion for setting Google as the default search engine on smartphones and web browsers effectively made it impossible for other competitors to succeed.
“Google’s distribution agreements close a significant part of the market for general search services and limit the opportunities of competitors”, the judge said.
Mehta also emphasized that monopolizing distribution on phones and browsers has allowed Google to raise prices for online advertising unhindered.
“Evidence at trial suggests that Google’s monopoly power, supported by exclusivity agreements, enabled the company to raise prices for text ads without significantly restricting competition.” – he wrote.
Prosecutor Merrick Garland called this victory “historic for the American people” and promised that the US Department of Justice will continue to vigorously enforce antitrust laws.
Google said it intends to appeal the decision. “We will continue to focus on creating products that people find useful and easy to use,” said Google Global Affairs President Kent Walker.
The court also recognized that Google does not have a monopoly on the general search advertising market, noting that competitors such as Amazon, Walmart and other retailers actively offer search-related advertising on their platforms. However, Google has a monopoly on search text ads that appear at the top of the search results page, driving users to their sites.
