Much has been said about Google’s influence on search – so much so that “google” has become a verb. We all know what it means to “google” something. A federal judge decided that search dominance meant Google violated U.S. law and handed the company a huge loss in an antitrust lawsuit.
Federal Lawsuit Decision
The federal lawsuit was brought against Google Search, or rather Google’s parent, Alphabet, by the U.S. Department of Justice in 2020. The case was heard in the fall of 2023.
“The court reaches the following conclusion: Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly,” said District Judge Amit Mehta in his judgement.
Sure, there are other search engines, but it’s the lengths Google goes to, to keep its spot as the number one search engine that makes it a monopolist. Google search is about 90 percent of the online search market, while it’s about 95 percent on smartphones.
This is because of Google’s contract with other big tech companies. Google paid $26.3 billion in 2021 to be a default search engine. One of the companies it pays is Apple, as it wants to continue to be the default search engine on Safari on Macs, as well as iPhones and iPads. Just losing its position as the default search engine for Safari could add up to a “significant drop in queries and billions of dollars in lost revenues,” according to Mehta.
“The default is extremely valuable real estate. … Even if a new entrant were positioned from a quality standpoint to bid for the default when an agreement expires, such a firm could compete only if it were prepared to pay partners upwards of billions of dollars in revenue share and make them whole for any revenue shortfalls resulting from the change,” continued Mehta in his judgement.
This all comes up at an interesting time: when Google is redoing search and adding AI.
Aftermath of Mehta’s Decision
Alphabet is already planning to appeal Mehta’s decision, saying in a statement, “This decision recognizes that Google offers the best search engine, but concludes that we shouldn’t be allowed to make it easily available.”
This appeal could be made to the D.C. Circuit Court and/or the U.S. Supreme Court. It could tie it up in the courts for quite some time, meaning the ruling may not be affecting your searches for a year or two – or more.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland celebrated Mehta’s judgement, calling it “a historic win for the American people.” He also took the time to remind everyone that “no company – no matter how large or influential – is above the law.”
Also with huge lawsuits against them, are Meta, Amazon, and Apple. Federal antitrust regulators claim these other big tech companies have also illegally maintained monopolies. Google is also headed back to court over its advertising business next month.
What punishment will be enacted against Google and its search tactics in the current lawsuit is unknown at this point. It’s also unknown whether that will wait for the appeal process or be delivered now. If you decide to leave Google search now, check out these search engines that will ensure your privacy. Also check out these Google Analytics alternatives to safeguard your privacy.
Image credit: Unsplash
