A federal court judge has ruled against Google, claiming that the company has monopolized the global web search market. This decision threatens to disrupt one of the biggest companies the world has ever seen and other big techs in general. The judge said that Google pays big companies like Apple and Samsung to make Google the default search engine in their web browsers. According to financial reports by both companies, Google paid Apple a whopping $20 billion, or 36% of the revenue generated through ads played on searches done through Apple Safari.
If this Monopoly case goes any further, which it will, Google might have to break its agreements with Apple and Samsung. Experts claim this will cost Apple around 4-6% of its annual revenue. The judge has given Google until 6 September for the next hearing. However, Google will plead not guilty and appeal the ruling.
The federal court judge, Amit Mehta, a President Obama appointee, also said that Google controls 94.9% of all global web searches and that it’s unfair to pay for exclusive agreements.
Also Read: Google Pays $10 Billion To Defeat Search Engine Market.
Herbert Hovencamp, a professor of law at the University of Pennsylvania, shared his thoughts on the development and said, “The message here is that if you’ve got a dominant market position with a product, you’d better avoid the use of exclusive agreements and make sure any agreement you make gives the buyer free choice to substitute away.”
However, many experts believe the government can make a difference in the ruling. There is a precedent that can save Google from all things going South. In 2001, during the George W Bush administration, a lower court made the same ruling against Microsoft. However, Bush changed the course of the investigation by putting the federal court on it and pushing for a settlement rather than a breakup. That said, Trump doesn’t seem like a fan of Google, and his VP, JD Lance, has supported a crackdown on big techs. Moreover, Kamala Harris’ views on antitrust are still unknown.
It is the start of a much bigger movement against big tech. Similar accusations could soon be made against other American tech giants, like Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta. Currently, the whole thing rides over the decision on Sept 6.
