A US judge hearing a Justice Department antitrust case has upheld the federal government’s key claims accusing Google of illegally maintaining a monopoly on the Internet search market.
Google, a unit of Alphabet, had sought summary judgment on all of the government’s claims in the case.
U.S. Judge Amit Mehta, in a ruling issued Friday in Washington, granted Google’s request on some grounds but allowed the rest of the claims to go to trial next month.
The Department of Justice sued Google in 2020, accusing the $1.6 trillion company of overreaching in the biggest challenge to big tech’s power and influence since it sued Microsoft Corp. in 1998. Illegally used its market muscle to block competitors.
Mehta is also hearing a case brought against Google by the attorneys general of 38 states and territories.
Mehta rejected allegations by states that Google made it difficult for Internet users to find specialized search engines, such as Expedia for travel or OpenTable for restaurants, saying that states ” has not demonstrated the desired competitive effect in the relevant market.”
Google said Friday that it appreciated the court’s “careful consideration and decision to dismiss Google Search’s design claims” in the case brought by the states.
“We look forward to demonstrating at trial that promoting and distributing our services is legal and pro-competitive,” added Kent Walker, Google’s chief legal officer.
Google has denied any wrongdoing in both cases.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Wieser said he was pleased with Mehta’s opinion, adding: “We will continue to evaluate how best to proceed and address Google’s pattern of illegal conduct.” to establish which harms consumers and competition.”
Mehta noted that Google LLC operates the largest US Internet general search engine whose “brand name has become so ubiquitous that dictionaries recognize it as a verb.” He noted that Google’s market share in 2020 was about 90 percent and that advertisers spend $80 billion a year alone to reach ordinary search users.
“A company with monopoly power acts unlawfully only when its conduct prevents competition,” Mehta wrote.
Mehta also said the government would have to show that each particular action — how Google handles search ads, for example — violated antitrust law. This means that the government cannot show a series of acts and argue that they collectively violate antitrust law.
The government, which filed its lawsuit in the waning days of the Trump administration, has argued that Google illegally siphons off billions each year from smartphone makers like Apple, LG, Motorola and Samsung, carriers like Verizon and browsers like Mozilla. Pays dollars. Find your customers. Mehta refused to throw out the argument.
The Justice Department had no immediate comment.
In late April, a U.S. judge in Virginia denied Google’s motion to dismiss a separate Justice Department antitrust lawsuit focused on the advertising technology, saying the government’s case was strong enough to move forward.
The government has argued that Google should be forced to sell its Ad Manager suite. Google has also denied any wrongdoing in the matter.
