“Google Plans Legal Battle Over Antitrust Ruling as Judge Proposes Weaker Remedies”

On Saturday, Google’s parent company Alphabet announced its intention to contest an antitrust ruling in which a federal judge suggested less stringent methods to enhance competition in online search compared to the decade-long approach proposed by antitrust regulators.

«We are awaiting the Court’s ruling. We firmly maintain that the original verdict was erroneous and are eager for the opportunity to appeal,» Google stated in a message on X.

US District Judge Amit Mehta in Washington concluded the trial on Friday, which focused on potential remedies for Google’s unlawful monopoly in online search and associated advertising.

In April, a federal judge determined that Google had unlawfully monopolized two sectors of online advertising technology, with the US Department of Justice asserting that Google should divest at least its Google Ad Manager, which comprises both the publisher ad server and advertising exchange.

The DOJ, along with a coalition of states, is urging Google to share search information and stop making multibillion-dollar payments to Apple and other smartphone manufacturers to remain the default search engine on new devices.

Regulators express concerns regarding how Google’s dominance in search provides it leverage in Artificial Intelligence (AI) initiatives such as Gemini and vice versa.

During the hearing, John Schmidtlein, a lawyer representing Google, stated that while generative AI is shaping the appearance of search, Google has mitigated any competitive concerns regarding AI by refraining from exclusive contracts with wireless carriers and smartphone manufacturers, including Samsung Electronics, thereby allowing them to install competing search and AI applications on new devices.

© Thomson Reuters 2025

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