A federal judge ruled this week that the antitrust case against Google, filed by the Department of Justice and a coalition of states, may proceed to trial. However, the scope of claims has been narrowed down, giving Google a win in the ruling. The judge, Amit Mehta, stated that Google will not have to defend itself against allegations that it has harmed competition by favoring its own services over rivals like Yelp or Expedia.
The claims made by the states focused on Google’s impact on niche markets, such as restaurant reservations through OpenTable or shopping on eBay, by limiting these businesses’ visibility in search results and requiring their data to be shared with Google. These claims have been dismissed by Mehta due to a lack of evidence demonstrating anticompetitive effects in the relevant markets.
Despite the narrowed scope, the case will proceed with allegations regarding Google’s dominance in the search market, including claims related to “exclusive” contracts and Google’s ad buying tool.
“There remain genuine disputes of material fact that warrant a trial,” Mehta wrote in his ruling.
The trial is scheduled to begin on September 12.
In response to the ruling, Kent Walker, Google’s president of global affairs and chief legal officer, expressed appreciation for the court’s decision to dismiss claims regarding the design of Google Search. Walker stated, “Our engineers build Search to provide the best results and help you quickly find what you’re looking for. People choose to use Google because it’s helpful. We look forward to showing at trial that promoting and distributing our services is both legal and pro-competitive.”
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, who is leading the state-led coalition, expressed satisfaction with the ruling and stated that the lawsuit will proceed to trial in September. Weiser added, “We will continue to evaluate how to best press forward and establish Google’s pattern of illegal conduct that harms consumers and competition.”
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