On Monday Google asked a federal court to toss out the DOJ’s 2020 lawsuit against it, which alleged that the search giant violated antitrust law to maintain dominance in its search business.
Documents laying out Google’s reasoning for the summary judgment request were sealed. When it was filed, the company said the lawsuit was “deeply flawed” and “relies on dubious antitrust arguments.” It argued that its overwhelming market share, which allowed “google” to become a verb meaning “search,” is thanks to the quality of its search product, adding that its efforts to promote search were entirely legal.
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The DOJ and states brought the complaint under Section 2 of the Sherman Act, alleging Google has unlawfully maintained monopolies in markets for “general search services, search advertising, and general search text advertising.”
“Google is the gateway to the internet and a search advertising behemoth,” U.S. Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen said. “It has maintained its monopoly power through exclusionary practices that are harmful to competition.”
The states in the lawsuit are Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, South Carolina and Texas.
Trial in the case is set for September 2023.
