DOJ Appeals Spark Renewed Scrutiny on Apple-Google Search Deal Amid Antitrust Battle

United States - Ekhbary News Agency

DOJ Appeals Spark Renewed Scrutiny on Apple-Google Search Deal Amid Antitrust Battle

The long-running antitrust saga involving Google's dominant search position and its lucrative partnership with Apple has taken a new turn. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), joined by a coalition of states, has formally appealed a federal judge's December 2025 ruling, which, despite finding Google guilty of maintaining an illegal search monopoly, largely preserved its contentious default search engine agreement with Apple. This cross-appeal intensifies the legal battle, potentially reopening critical aspects of the tech giants' collaboration to judicial review and threatening a deal worth billions annually.

The genesis of this complex case dates back to August 2024, when Judge Amit Mehta issued a pivotal initial ruling, declaring that Google had resorted to illegal means to maintain its dominant position in the U.S. online search market. The judgment specifically highlighted Google’s exclusionary agreements with companies such as Apple, identifying them as key contributors to steeper anti-competitive effects. Despite this finding of monopoly, the specifics of the final judgment remained contentious. This initial ruling provided significant momentum for the plaintiffs, setting the stage for a year-long remedies phase.

During this critical phase, the court heard extensive testimony from multiple witnesses representing all sides, including those from associated companies like Apple. The range of proposed remedies for Google's monopolistic behavior was vast, spanning from radical suggestions like forcing Google to spin off its Chrome browser to barring it from exclusive agreements akin to the one it holds with Apple. This period was fraught with anticipation, as the industry watched closely to see if the court would take aggressive action to dismantle Google's dominance.

It was during one such hearing in the remedies phase that Apple's Senior Vice President of Services, Eddy Cue, famously offered controversial testimony that significantly downplayed the importance of Apple's deal with Google. Cue suggested that advancements in artificial intelligence would render search (and even the iPhone itself) obsolete to the point where their current exclusive agreement would become irrelevant. These remarks were widely interpreted as an attempt to diminish the perceived value of the deal, potentially lessening the impact of any judicial mandate aimed at dismantling it.

Surprisingly, when Judge Mehta issued his final opinion last September, it proved to be overwhelmingly beneficial to Google. On December 5, 2025, the court handed down its final judgment, which notably allowed Google to continue paying billions of dollars to Apple to remain the default search engine on its devices, albeit with very few caveats. This decision was a significant victory for Google, preserving a major revenue stream and a critical competitive advantage. Google wasted no time appealing the parts of the judgment that still imposed restrictions, filing its challenge with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals last month.

Now, in a fresh and significant development, court documents revealed today that the U.S. Department of Justice and a coalition of states—including Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, South Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin—are also formally filing a cross-appeal against the decision. This cross-appeal aims to overturn as much of Judge Mehta's decision as possible, and it could specifically target the parts of Google’s deal with Apple that were left intact. This means one of the most valuable partnerships in the tech world could once again face intense judicial scrutiny, with the potential for the default search engine clause—a financial lifeline for both companies—to be invalidated.

The implications of this cross-appeal are far-reaching. For Google, it reignites the specter of regulatory intervention in its core business model, threatening to undermine its strategy for maintaining search dominance. For Apple, the threat of losing billions in annual revenue from Google would be a significant financial blow, potentially forcing it to reassess its search strategy and either develop its own search engine or seek alternative partnerships. Both tech giants have remained silent on this latest development, a stance expected given the sensitivity of the ongoing legal proceedings.

It is unlikely that the situation will change anytime soon. The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals is expected to take considerable time to review the case, with a resolution not anticipated until later this year or beyond. This ongoing legal battle underscores the escalating challenges faced by major technology companies from governments seeking to curb their power and ensure fair competition in the digital marketplace.

Ekhbary News Agency