The U.S. government started a major court case against Google on Tuesday. They want to know if Google unfairly dominates online search.
Kenneth Dintzer, a Justice Department lawyer, said the trial is about Google’s future competition.
The U.S. claims Google made illegal deals with Apple, Samsung, and Firefox. These deals set Google as the default search engine on their devices.
The trial will last ten weeks and is led by Judge Amit Mehta. About a hundred people will speak as witnesses.
Kent Walker, Google’s legal head, said their success is earned. He added that people use Google because they want to.
This case is the biggest of its kind since the U.S. sued Microsoft over 20 years ago. Back then, the issue was about Windows, Microsoft’s operating system.
Judge Mehta joked about the large number of lawyers in the room.
The first U.S. case against Microsoft ended in a settlement in 2001. At that time, Google was a small, new company.
The Justice Department said that old Google is long gone. Dintzer stated the trial will focus on Google’s actions to keep its lead.
If Google loses, significant changes may come for the company. In Europe, Google was fined US$9.8 billion, but some cases are still in appeal.
Background
The outcome matters a lot for President Biden too. His team sued Google’s parent, Alphabet, earlier this year but hasn’t won yet.
Appeals will likely happen no matter the result, making the trial last even longer. Legal analyst Lopatka said a government loss would still be a big deal.
This case echoes past challenges against big tech companies. Over two decades ago, the U.S. took Microsoft to court for similar reasons.
That case ended in a settlement. At that time, Google was a small startup. Today, Google is a tech giant, much like Microsoft was in the past.
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