Critical court ruling against Google: 'Illegal monopoly'

A federal judge in the US has signed off on a significant decision in the field of internet technology, ruling that Google has established an "illegal monopoly" in internet search and search advertising.

The US Department of Justice and Google were the opposing parties in the case, and the long-awaited ruling was announced by federal judge Amit Mehta. 

Judge Mehta stated, "After having carefully considered and weighed the witness testimony and evidence, the court reaches the following conclusion: Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly. It has violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act."

THE DECISION MAY BE APPEALED 

With this ruling, the US Department of Justice has won a case of this magnitude for the first time in the antitrust lawsuits it has filed to date. It is noted that Google, having lost a major case regarding internet search, may appeal this decision.

The Department of Justice had filed two antitrust lawsuits against Google on the grounds that it controls 90% of internet search and more than 95% of the mobile search engine category.

LAWSUIT AGAINST GOOGLE 

In a statement made by the US Department of Justice on January 24, 2023, it was reported that an "antitrust" lawsuit was filed against Google in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, together with the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Virginia.

The statement indicated that the company had monopolized numerous digital advertising technology products, alleging that Google used anti-competitive, exclusionary, and illegal methods to eliminate or significantly diminish any threat to its dominance in the sector.

It was stated that over the last 15 years, Google had neutralized or eliminated advertising technology competitors through acquisitions, and that the company used its dominance in the digital advertising market to force more publishers and advertisers to use its products while preventing the use of competing products.

The statement noted that in this way, Google consolidated its dominance in the sector, and details of the company's anti-competitive behavior were also included. The US Department of Justice had also filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google in 2020 for monopolizing search and search advertising.