Google has also escaped being forced to divest Android and Chrome.
However Google has to stop some of its practices. It must end exclusive contracts that make its search engine the default on devices and browsers, like Apple and Samsung. In 2021 Google paid $26 billion for those contracts.
However, it may still pay partners to preload or position its search services on a non-exclusive basis.
Google must also share certain search index and user interaction data with “qualified competitors,” including AI firms.
A special supervisory committee will oversee Google’s compliance with the remedies for a period of six years.
Google responded to the judgment:
“Earlier today a U.S. court overseeing the Department of Justice’s lawsuit over how we distribute Search issued a decision on next steps.
Today’s decision recognizes how much the industry has changed through the advent of AI, which is giving people so many more ways to find information. This underlines what we’ve been saying since this case was filed in 2020: Competition is intense and people can easily choose the services they want. That’s why we disagree so strongly with the Court’s initial decision in August 2024 on liability.
Now the Court has imposed limits on how we distribute Google services, and will require us to share Search data with rivals. We have concerns about how these requirements will impact our users and their privacy, and we’re reviewing the decision closely. The Court did recognize that divesting Chrome and Android would have gone beyond the case’s focus on search distribution, and would have harmed consumers and our partners.”
