A US court has delivered a landmark ruling that could shape the future of the internet, handing Google a significant legal victory. In a long-running antitrust case, Judge Amit Mehta of the District Court for the District of Columbia decided that the tech giant would not be forced to divest its core products – the Chrome browser and the Android operating system. Instead, Google must provide competitors with access to parts of its data in order to strengthen competition in the search market. This outcome avoids the most drastic remedy of a corporate break-up but compels the company to share more of its dominance with rivals. Investors welcomed the decision: shares of Google’s parent company Alphabet jumped 7.2 per cent on publication of the ruling, while Apple also saw its stock rise by 3 per cent as the court allowed Google to continue making multibillion-dollar payments to keep its search engine as the default option on iPhones. According to analysts at Morgan Stanley, these payments amount to as much as 20 billion US dollars a year. This was reported by The WP Times, citing Reuters.

Competition from artificial intelligence

Judge Mehta emphasised that Google’s strongest challengers increasingly come from companies developing artificial intelligence rather than from traditional search engine providers. “The court is being asked to look into a crystal ball and predict the future – that is not necessarily a judge’s strength,” he remarked. The rapid rise of ChatGPT and similar services shows that AI-based products may become more formidable competitors to Google than conventional players. Against this backdrop, the judge concluded there was no need to force a sale of Chrome or Android.

Data access for rivals

Granting competitors access to Google’s data will pose a considerable challenge for the company, but analysts argue it could open up new opportunities for the development of AI-driven search services and chatbots. While this requirement curtails Google’s control, investors remain confident because the company retains its flagship products. “The sheer flow of money into the sector and the speed of progress are remarkable,” Mehta wrote. Experts believe that users will gradually adapt to new services, meaning the immediate threat to Google remains limited.

Billions in payments to Apple

The court also allowed Google to continue paying Apple and other device manufacturers vast sums to keep its search engine set as default. Analysts estimate Apple alone receives around 20 billion dollars annually from these arrangements. However, Google has lost the ability to strike exclusive deals that block competitors’ apps from being pre-installed – a concession seen as a step towards fairer competition.

Ongoing legal challenges

Despite this victory, Google still faces multiple legal battles in the United States. The company is contesting a lawsuit brought by Epic Games that could alter the rules of its app store. Later this month, another trial is scheduled to begin over Google’s dominance in online advertising. These proceedings form part of the broader regulatory push against Big Tech that began during Donald Trump’s presidency and continues to affect Meta, Amazon and Apple.

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