The U.S. government will layout its antitrust case against Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O), opens new tab Google in closing arguments on Thursday, wrapping up a trial in which the online search leader is accused of breaking the law to stay on top.The U.S. government has hammered away at Google in a trial that started Sept. 12, arguing Google is a monopolist and illegally abused its power to favor its bottom line.
This case, filed by the Trump administration, was the first of five aimed at reining in the market power of tech leaders. The second, against Meta, was also filed during the Trump administration, while Biden’s antitrust enforcers have followed with a second case against Google and cases against Amazon.com (AMZN.O), opens new tab and Apple Inc (AAPL.O), opens new tab.
In the non-jury trial, the judge will weigh whether Google violated the law, and will later look at any punishment if needed.Witnesses from Verizon (VZ.N), opens new tab, Android maker Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), opens new tab and Google itself testified about the company’s annual payments – $26.3 billion in 2021 – to ensure that its search is the default on smartphones and browsers, and to keep its dominant market share.
