Judge Rules Google Must Face Sweeping Antitrust Remedies

A federal judge has ruled that Google illegally maintained its monopoly over online search, prompting the U.S. Department of Justice and multiple state attorneys general to seek sweeping antitrust remedies. Proposed penalties include forcing Google to sell its Chrome browser, end exclusive default search agreements, license search data to competitors, and potentially sell off Android if other measures fail. The government argues these steps are necessary to restore competition and cites Google's payments to Samsung for making Gemini the default assistant as evidence of ongoing dominance. Google claims that such actions would harm consumers, stifle innovation, and endanger user privacy, and it plans to appeal any adverse ruling. This antitrust case comes after a separate legal defeat for Google in ad tech, increasing scrutiny of its business practices. Judge Amit Mehta is expected to rule on the remedies by August, which could result in the most significant U.S. tech breakup since AT&T in 1982.