Google Battles Monopoly Accusations and Global Legal Pressure

Google is in court today, trying to prove its advertising business isn’t a monopoly. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) argues Google has too much power, locking out competition. If Google loses, it may have to drastically change how it operates, possibly selling parts of its business like the Chrome browser or Android.

Beyond this case, Google faces multiple legal threats worldwide:

• Search Monopoly: The DOJ accuses Google of unfairly dominating search, partly by paying companies like Apple to make Google their default search engine.
• Local Search Favoritism: Yelp claims Google prioritizes its own results unfairly.
• App Store Monopoly: Epic Games won a case saying Google’s Play Store limits competition, forcing changes to how the store operates.
• EU Investigations: The European Union is probing Google under stricter tech regulations.

Even if Google avoids major penalties, these lawsuits could force changes that disrupt its operations, similar to how Microsoft was affected by antitrust cases in the 2000s.

The outcome of these cases, combined with changing political administrations, could reshape Google’s future. Regardless, the tech giant is under intense pressure to alter its business practices.