The US Department of Justice is suing Google over allegations that it is illegally maintaining dominance in the market for search engines. The DOJ wants Google to sell some of its assets, such as its Chrome browser. The hearings started on April 22 and will last for three weeks. This proposal has drawn interest from several tech firms, including OpenAI Perplexity AI, and Yahoo. All have expressed a willingness to purchase Chrome if the court mandates its sale.
This case could affect how tech companies conduct business and how people find answers to online search queries. Government lawyers In their opening statements on Monday, they said that Google should be required to sell Chrome, the web browser it has developed, which encourages users to use Google’s search engine. David Dahlquist, a lawyer for the Justice Department, said that Google should be forced to assist rival search engines it has unfairly excluded from competition.
“This is the time for the court to tell Google and all other monopolists who are out there listening, and they are listening, that there are consequences when you break the antitrust laws,” Dahlquist Said,””https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/21/technology/google-search-remedies-hearing.html” ” target=””_self””> The New York Times. Google counters
Google’s attorneys say that any remedy should only take into account the company’s agreements with companies such Apple, Mozilla, and Samsung to make Google the default search engine on smartphones and other devices.
“Google won its place in the market fair and square,” According to John Schmidtlein, the company’s attorney. NBC News. Judge Amit P. Mehta of the US District Court for the District of Columbia is currently hearing arguments, and executives from major technology and artificial intelligence companies are testifying.
Mehta was the same judge that ruled in August, that Google had illegally maintained a search monopoly. This trial, which took place last year, lasted 10 weeks and had been in the works for years.
“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,” Mehta wrote the August decision. “It has violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act.”
Mehta is expected to issue remedies by the end summer after hearing arguments.
Watch this: Judge Says Google Is an Illegal Monopoly: Now What?
Google, the global leader in online search, has a market share of more than 89%, according to GlobalStats shows a slight drop from 91% last year.
Google representative referred CNET back to the Statement made by the company onlinebefore the hearings started. Lee-Anne Mulholland, vice president of the company, says that such sweeping remedies will harm America’s economic situation.
Mulholland says the DOJ proposal will make it harder for Google users to access their preferred services, prevent the company from being competitive and force Google to share private search queries with others.
OpenAI wants to buy Chrome.
OpenAI executive Nick Turley testified that his company would be interested in purchasing the Google Chrome browser, if the company was forced to sell it.
Turley also stated that ChatGPT is OpenAI’s artificial-intelligence chatbot “years away from its goal of being able to use its own search technology to answer 80% of queries,” as per Reuters. Turley also testified Google refused an OpenAI attempt to use Google search technology in ChatGPT. Perplexity AI, and Yahoo have both expressed interest in purchasing Chrome. Dmitry Shevelenko is Perplexity’s chief executive officer. In court, Mr. Provost expressed interest in buying Chrome .
Yahoo General Manager of Search, Brian Provost also Testified that the company is interested in acquiring Chrome. Yahoo has been working on its own browser prototype, but believes that According to The Verge, buying Chrome is the fastest way for Google to increase its search market share.
Possible outcomes
Google could face many things, including a breakup. If such a punishment were imposed, it could involve the divisions of the company that operate Android smartphones or its Chrome browser.
DOJ wants to prevent Google from entering exclusive agreements that would make its search engine default on devices and web browsers. The DOJ wants Google to also share certain user data to competitors to level the field.
It would be the first time since Microsoft’s failed attempt to break up the company in 2000 that the government has attempted to dismantle an illegal monopoly.
Google may also be forced into making its data available to rivals or abandoning the controversial economic deals which made the Google search engine default on devices like the iPhone.
Would Google settle? Chirag Shah is a professor of the Information School of the University of Washington. He told CNET that the year was 19659032. “There are three big things on the negotiating table: the Chrome browser, Google’s deals with Apple and others for the default search engine spot, and the ad market where Google has a monopoly and tons of data. I don’t think the FTC is going to get it all, so the question is what would be a worthy settlement for both sides.”
OpenAI and Microsoft have all benefited, but they also compete directly with the search giant. Shah said. “For long, search engines like that have been squashed due to all these monopolistic behaviors Google has exhibited. That’s not an unknown thing, but the question is — how much that detail is paid attention to now.”
He notes that Google is still the gorilla in the search industry.
“As far as the traditional search goes, yes, Google is practically the only player,” Shah said. Why does it matter?
Google’s not the only company with legal issues. Apple and Amazon, two major tech companies, are also facing antitrust suits. Antitrust lawsuits are also being filed against Apple and Amazon, two major tech companies. The antitrust trial against Meta (owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp) began on April 14.
The trial could also affect the burgeoning artificial intelligence era. The The Justice Departmenthas stated that it expects Google’s AI products to be used to further extend their monopoly if remedies aren’t imposed.
Since the August trial, there have been changes in presidential administrations. The Times reports that the hearings show the Trump administration’s intention to keep an eye on changing tech industries.
Are people switching from default search engines to other ones?
In the August case, Google paid Apple and other companies in order to make their search engine default on devices like Apple’s iPhone. Google has said that it doesn’t have a monopoly by making such agreements, and that consumers can change their defaults on their devices to use another search engine. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in October the idea that people switch from one search engine “completely bogus” is “defaults is the only thing that matters in changing search behavior.”
and added that
According to the Justice Department the Google search engine accounts for nearly 90% web searches. However, the company disputes this number, according to the Times.
Sherman Antitrust Actis an 1890 law that prohibits activities that restrict interstate commerce or competition in the marketplace. It essentially outlaws corporate monopolies. It is the cornerstone of US Antitrust legislation and led to the federal government breaking up the Gilded Age Industrial Giants of the late 19th century. Imad Khan, a CNET reporter, contributed to this report.
