US DoJ claims Google pays Apple and others $10 billion a year to dominate search engine market
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The US government is of the opinion that the tech giant gained domination in the market using 'unfair means'
The US Department of Justice (DoJ) on Tuesday (September 12) accused Google of paying a whopping $10 billion a year to Apple and other companies to maintain its monopoly in the search engine market. The accusation was hurled during the opening day of the antitrust trial, dubbed the biggest case in the US in more than two decades, underway in Washington.
"This case is about the future of the internet and whether Google will ever face meaningful competition in search," Justice Department lawyer Kenneth Dintzer was quoted as saying by news agency AFP.
Dintzer told Judge Amit P. Mehta, who is presiding over the case that Google paid the said $10 billion amount every year to Apple and others to secure its search engine's default status on phones and web browsers, thereby burying upstarts before they have a chance to grow.
The US government is of the opinion that the tech giant gained domination in the market using 'unfair means'. It forged exclusivity contracts with device makers, mobile operators and other companies that left rivals with little to no chance of standing any competition.
Dintzer stated that over the last decade, Google created a "feedback loop", in which its domination grew manifolds.
"Through this feedback loop, this wheel has been turning for more than 12 years. It always turns to Google's advantage."
Responding to the allegations, Google's attorney John Schmidtlein in the opening remarks said: “Apple repeatedly chose Google as the default because Apple believed it was the best experience for its users."
Trial to last nearly three months
Over the next 10 weeks, Judge Mehta will hear more than 100 witness testimonies and decide whether the case brought by the US Department of Justice has any merit or not. Google CEO Sundar Pichai, as well as other senior executives or former employees from Google, Apple, Microsoft and Samsung, are expected to take the stand and give their testimony.
His ruling, as per AFP, is expected "many months" after the roughly three months of expected hearings. Even then, Google is not expected to face a monetary penalty as the DoJ and state allies are seeking an injunction barring Google from continuing the alleged "exclusionary" anti-competitive practices
Notably, the last time the US government went hammer and tongs against a tech giant was in the 1990s. During that time, the US government targeted Microsoft over the dominance of its Windows operating system.
(With inputs from agencies)
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