Google and the Justice Department present their final arguments on whether the search engine is a monopoly – KGET 17

The largest U.S. antitrust trial in over two decades reached its climax as government lawyers argued that Google’s dominance as an internet search engine is an illegal monopoly. The Justice Department contended that Google spends over $20 billion annually to stifle competition, while Google defended its position by emphasizing its excellence in delivering search results.

The case, which has been ongoing for 10 weeks, focused on Google’s contracts with companies like Apple to make Google the default search engine on devices. The government argued that these contracts demonstrate Google’s efforts to maintain a monopoly status, while Google maintained that consumers choose its search engine based on merit.

During closing arguments, the judge questioned whether other companies like social media platforms truly compete in the same market as Google. Google’s lawyer highlighted the company’s ability to place ads directly in response to user queries as a unique feature.

The trial also delved into Google’s document retention practices, with government lawyers accusing the tech giant of purposefully destroying evidence of anticompetitive behavior. The judge criticized Google’s document retention policy and suggested that sanctions may be necessary.

While Google awaits the judge’s ruling, the government has raised concerns about Google’s ability to artificially inflate ad prices due to its search engine monopoly. If found guilty, the trial will move into a “remedies” phase to determine how to promote competition in the search-engine market. The outcome of this high-stakes trial could have far-reaching implications for the tech industry.