A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has ruled in favor of Attorney General Bob Ferguson's lawsuit, declaring that Google unlawfully leverages its dominance in the online search and related text advertising markets through exclusionary contracts. This ruling comes as part of a larger antitrust lawsuit involving a bipartisan coalition of 38 attorneys general.
"Google undermines competition and squelches innovation to protect its profits," said Ferguson. "Today’s ruling from a federal judge affirms the evidence presented by our bipartisan coalition: Google wields monopoly power over online search. Fair competition ensures a robust, healthy marketplace where the consumer is the priority. Google’s unlawful monopoly cripples competition and harms consumers. We will continue holding powerful interests accountable when they engage in unfair, anticompetitive conduct that harms Washingtonians."
U.S. District Court Judge Amit P. Mehta agreed with the claims made by the attorneys general and the Department of Justice, which had filed a separate but similar lawsuit, that Google violated Section 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act by maintaining a monopoly over its general search and text advertising businesses.
The case background reveals that Ferguson joined a bipartisan group of 38 attorneys general to file the lawsuit in December 2020 in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The lawsuit asserts that Google and its parent company Alphabet Inc. used exclusionary contracts and unlawful self-preferencing business practices to protect their monopoly, harming consumers and stifling competition.
According to court documents, Google provides billions of dollars annually in financial incentives to pre-install Google Search as the default or exclusive search program on various internet-connected devices, ranging from computers and smartphones to voice-based home speakers and internet-connected vehicles. The lawsuit claims this practice is anticompetitive and intended to protect Google's market dominance.
Nearly 90 percent of all internet searches in the United States are conducted through Google's search engine, with no other competing search engine exceeding 7 percent market share.
The court documents also highlight that Google tracks virtually every search and click by consumers — whom Google's chief economist describes as "the great unwashed" — leveraging user data to strengthen its position in the lucrative search-based advertising market. Over the past decade, Google's revenue from search advertising has grown by 300 percent, reaching $98 billion in 2019.
While Judge Mehta agreed with most claims against Google, he did not concur with allegations that Google's search engine unlawfully drove consumers away from specialized sellers or used its own search advertising management tool to drive advertisers exclusively to its platform.
Ferguson's lawsuit seeks to halt Google's anticompetitive conduct, void any contracts blocking competitors' access to services, and provide additional relief aimed at restoring competition. This may include requiring Google to divest portions of its business facilitating its monopoly.
The judge will now determine what consequences Google must face for these actions.