Apple Hits a Brick Wall with Desperate Attempt to Intervene in Google Search Monopoly Trial

A U.S. District Court judge has denied Apple’s request to intervene in the ongoing Google Search monopoly trial, which could end the massive payments Google makes to Apple every year to ensure its search dominance remains unchallenged.

The Verge reports that U.S. District Court Judge Amit Mehta has denied Apple’s emergency request to halt the Google Search monopoly trial. The trial, which could potentially dismantle the search exclusivity deal between Google and Apple reportedly worth up to $18 billion a year, is set to move forward without Apple’s involvement.

Apple filed an emergency motion on January 30, seeking to intervene in the trial, arguing that it needed to be involved to protect its business dealings with Google. The tech giant claimed that it could lose “the ability to defend its right to reach other arrangements with Google that could benefit millions of users and Apple’s entitlement to compensation for distributing Google search to its users.”

However, Judge Mehta ruled against Apple’s request on Sunday, stating that the company had not demonstrated satisfactory reasons for its emergency motion to stay. In his order, Mehta explained that Apple “has not established a likelihood of success on the merits” for the stay, including a lack of clear evidence on how Apple would suffer “certain and great” harm if not allowed to intervene.

The Google Search monopoly trial has been a closely watched case, with the Department of Justice arguing that Google should be forced to sell its Chrome browser and possibly spin off its Android operating system if necessary. In a previous ruling, Google was found liable for holding an illegal monopoly on general search, setting the stage for the upcoming remedies phase of the trial in April.

While Google has stated its intention to appeal the decision, the company’s proposed remedies focus on undoing its licensing deals that bundle apps and services together. This could have significant implications for the tech industry, as many companies rely on similar bundling practices to increase their market share and revenue.
Read more at the Verge here.