Google appeals US court ruling on search monopoly


FILE PHOTO: A Google logo is seen at a company research facility in Mountain View, California, U.S., May 13, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo

May ⁠22 (Reuters) - Alphabet's Google on Friday appealed a Washington ⁠federal judge's ruling that it holds illegal monopolies ‌in online search and related advertising.

Here are some details:

• Google argued that U.S. Judge Amit Mehta made legal errors in his ​2024 ruling, which found the ⁠company illegally blocked competitors ⁠by paying billions of dollars annually to firms including Apple ⁠to ‌be the default search engine on new devices.

• The arrangements did not prevent the ⁠device makers and browser developers from promoting ​rival search ‌services like Microsoft's Bing, Google argued.

• The company ⁠said it ​excelled in the market fairly by developing a "superior search engine through hard work, bold innovation, and shrewd business decisions."

• ⁠The U.S. Department of Justice is ​expected to file papers making its own arguments in July. A spokesperson for the DOJ declined to comment.

• ⁠Mehta had ordered Google to share some search data with competitors, potentially including artificial intelligence companies such as OpenAI, to restore competition. An appeals court ruling ​in Google's favour would overturn ⁠that order.

• If Google loses at the U.S. Court ​of Appeals for the District of ‌Columbia Circuit, it could appeal ​to the U.S. Supreme Court.

(Reporting by Jody Godoy in New York; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)

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