Judge Orders Google to Share Data, Sparking Online Search Competition
A Washington judge has mandated that Alphabet's Google must share search data with competitors to enhance competition. This decision follows a five-year legal battle over Google's online search monopoly. Google plans to appeal, while facing additional legal challenges concerning app store and advertising monopolies.
A recent ruling by a Washington judge has directed Alphabet's Google to share its data with competitors, aiming to foster competition in online search. The judge, however, rejected the prosecutors' demand for Google to sell its Chrome browser, a significant win for the tech giant.
Google's CEO, Sundar Pichai, had raised concerns during an April trial about data-sharing measures proposed by the U.S. Department of Justice. Google's position is that such measures could enable its rivals to reverse-engineer Google's proprietary technology. Although the company plans to appeal the ruling, this legal battle has unfolded over five years, with U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta previously asserting Google's monopoly in search advertising.
The Justice Department's case against Google forms part of a broader Big Tech crackdown initiated during President Trump's term. Besides search, Google is also battling lawsuits shared with 'Fortnite' maker Epic Games over app store dominance, along with facing a trial in September about online advertising technology monopolies. This bipartisan scrutiny extends to other tech giants like Meta, Amazon, and Apple.
(With inputs from agencies.)
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