The outcome of the case could fundamentally reshape the internet by potentially unseating Google as the go-to portal for information online.
The DOJ and a broad coalition of state attorneys general are pressing for remedies to restore competition even as search evolves to overlap with generative AI products such as ChatGPT. Prosecutors are concerned that Google’s dominance in search could extend to AI.
U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled last year that Google, the site and app where most U.S. internet users search for information, "has no true competitor." Google maintained its monopoly in part by paying billions of dollars to companies including Apple (AAPL.O), opens new tab, Samsung, AT&T (T.N), opens new tab and Verizon (VZ.N), opens new tab to be the default search engine on new mobile devices, the judge said.
The DOJ wants the judge to end those payments and require Google to share search data with competitors.
Google has said the proposals would give away its hard work, and jeopardize its users’ privacy and endanger smaller companies like Mozilla, the developer of the Firefox browser, that rely on Google for revenue.
The company recently loosened its agreements to allow device makers and carriers to pre-install other search and AI apps, according to evidence shown at trial. Google has said it plans to appeal once the judge makes a final ruling.
