Google has appealed a landmark antitrust ruling by a US district judge over its search business. The court found that the company illegally maintained a monopoly in online search markets.
Google said users choose its services freely rather than through coercion. Lee-Anne Mulholland, vice president for regulatory affairs, defended the company’s position after the August 2024 ruling. She said the court misunderstood why people rely on Google’s products.
Company says ruling ignores innovation and competition
Google announced the appeal on Friday and criticised Judge Amit Mehta’s decision. The company argued that the ruling failed to reflect fast technological change. It also said the court underestimated the competitive pressure Google faces.
Google asked the court to pause the rollout of corrective measures. Some analysts already viewed those remedies as relatively mild. The company said immediate enforcement would cause lasting harm.
Judge weighs AI shift but rejects breakup plan
Judge Mehta acknowledged rapid change inside Google’s business when he set remedies in September. He wrote that generative artificial intelligence reshaped the direction of the case.
He rejected a government demand to break up the company. That proposal included forcing Google to spin off Chrome, the world’s most widely used browser.
Instead, the judge ordered narrower measures. Those steps required Google to share selected data with court-approved competitors.
Data sharing and syndication spark resistance
The shared data would include parts of Google’s search index. That index acts as a vast map of online content across the web.
Judge Mehta also ordered Google to let some rivals display its search results. He said the move would give smaller firms time and resources to innovate.
Mulholland criticised those requirements on Friday. She said forced data sharing threatened privacy and reduced incentives for competitors to build original products.
Global scrutiny grows as AI ambitions expand
Google has poured increasing investment into artificial intelligence. Regulators have started to question how those tools affect competition and publishers.
Last month, the European Union opened an investigation into Google’s AI summaries. Those summaries appear above traditional search results.
The European Commission said it would examine Google’s data use. Officials also questioned whether publishers received fair compensation. Google warned that the probe could chill innovation in competitive markets.
This week, Google parent Alphabet reached a $4tn market value. Only three other companies have achieved that milestone.
