Google Faces Court Mandate to Adjust Search Practices Amid Antitrust Scrutiny
A court order will require Google to scale back some of its more aggressive tactics to get its search engine in front of as many users as possible; however, the company continues to advocate that new restrictions should not hinder its AI expansion, reports 24brussels.
During a recent hearing at a federal courthouse in Washington, D.C., Google attorney John Schmidtlein urged Judge Amit Mehta to refrain from blocking the company’s ability to bundle its Gemini AI application with popular services like YouTube and Maps. Judge Mehta expressed reservations about granting Google such leeway, citing concerns that mandating device manufacturers to pre-install the AI app could grant Google “leverage” to further boost Gemini’s visibility.
The court proceedings mark the latest chapter in the ongoing legal battle between Google and the U.S. Department of Justice over allegations that the tech giant unlawfully monopolized the search engine market. While Judge Mehta dismissed several of the DOJ’s more ambitious proposals, including divesting Chrome, he accepted recommendations aimed at enhancing competition, such as sharing search data with competitors and prohibiting exclusive contracts.
In defense of Google’s strategy, Schmidtlein asserted that the emerging AI sector warrants different treatment, drawing parallels between Google’s proposed Gemini bundle and Microsoft’s integration of CoPilot into its Office offerings. He emphasized that Maps and YouTube should not be considered monopoly products, contending that there is currently no evidence that Google holds monopoly power in the AI market.
