Anyone who’s used the internet at some point over the last 25 years won’t exactly struggle to understand that Google has a pervasive, and it turns out illegal, monopoly over online search. A recent ruling from a US court setting out what they think should be done about this stranglehold is, however, less clear-cut. It does little for Google’s competitors, while raising complex questions about privacy and data.
U.S. District Judge Mehta rejected calls from both the US Department of Justice and others for Google to be forced to sell off its browser Chrome or its mobile operating system Android. Instead, Google will be required to provide (one-off) access to some of its data (both search index and user data) to potential rivals looking to build and develop their own search engines. Google will also be permitted to continue paying others (like Apple and Mozilla) to use its search engine as a default.