US court finds Google's search engine monopoly illegal

A US District Court of Columbia has ruled that Google abused its power in the market to "stifle" the competition between search engines, and Google's monopoly is illegal, The Washington Post reports.

"Google is a monopolist and is acting accordingly to maintain its monopoly," the newspaper quoted part of Judge Amit Mehta’s 276-page ruling.

The court agreed with the US Justice Department's findings that the company violated antitrust laws by entering into agreements with Apple and other smartphone manufacturers that required Google to be pre-installed as the search engine on smartphones. The judge also decided that the company puts its competitors at a disadvantage in the advertising market.

"This victory over Google is historic for the American people. No company, no matter how big or powerful, is above the law," US Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

Kent Walker, president of global affairs at Alphabet (which owns Google), said the company plans to appeal the court's decision. The company has repeatedly stated that users themselves choose which search engine to use on their smartphones.

In September, the court will start examining another case against Google due to its leading position in the advertising market. Similar lawsuits have been filed against Apple, Amazon and Meta.