Google CEO Sundar Pichai has confirmed that the company is ready to engage in a years-long fight to appeal the recent federal judge’s antitrust ruling against it. Pichai appeared on Bloomberg’s The David Rubenstein Show, where he publicly spoke about the ongoing antitrust case against Google for the first time since Department of Justice prosecutors submitted their proposed remedies.
“It’s going to take time for it to play out. Where we think it really harms our ability to innovate on behalf of our users, we are going to be vigorous in defending ourselves,” he said. Pichai expressed disagreement with the judge’s decision, stating that the company plans to engage in a prolonged legal battle.
Pichai continued, “With our scale and size, I think scrutiny is inevitable. We’re still in the middle of the remedies phase, and we will appeal, and this process will likely take many years.”
In reaction to the judge labelling the tech giant as a “monopolist,” the Google CEO pointed out that the company’s success and competitors “acknowledge that we are the best search engine in the world.” Amid the ongoing court battle, while Google intends to continue its operation as usual, it will also closely monitor the remedies phase and submit its proposals.
About The Antitrust Case
In August, a Federal judge ruled that Google has been operating an illegal monopoly on online search and advertising. A case brought by the US Department of Justice (DOJ), raised concerns about the company’s market dominance in the internet search market, further alleging that Google even indulged in illegal practices of suppressing competing search engines.
In an agreement with the DOJ, Judge Amit Mehta ruled that Google acted as a monopolist in the internet search space by restricting competitors. In a recent move, the Department of Justice has proposed a series of sanctions against Google with proposals to possibly end the company’s exclusive agreements with companies like Apple and Samsung and prohibit data tracking.
The government is also considering “behavioural and structural” remedies to ensure Google couldn’t use its Chrome browser or Android phone in a way that advantages its search engine.
“For more than a decade, Google has controlled the most popular distribution channels, leaving rivals with little-to-no incentive to compete for users. Fully remedying these harms requires not only ending Google’s control of distribution today but also ensuring Google cannot control the distribution of tomorrow,” they wrote in the filing.
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