Washington: Agencies
A US court has convicted the American company "Google" of engaging in illegal practices to maintain its monopoly on online search services in the United States.
Federal District Court Judge Amit Mehta said in the text of the long-awaited ruling that Google, which accounts for 90% of online searches in the world, exploited its market dominance to crush competitors, according to the American newspaper "Wall Street Journal".
Mehta indicated in the content of the judicial ruling, which consists of 276 pages, that "Google is a monopoly company, and has acted as a monopoly company to maintain its monopoly" on online search services.
Mehta agreed with the basis of the lawsuit filed by the US government, that Google suppressed its competitors by paying billions of dollars to web browser operators and smartphone manufacturers to make Google their default search engine. According to the Cairo-based Youm7 website, citing the Middle East News Agency, Mehta said that these practices have allowed Google to tighten its grip on corporate-sponsored text ads that accompany search results. The Wall Street Journal reported that a Google spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment after the ruling was issued, noting that the ruling is a major victory for the US Department of Justice in its quest to combat monopolies and rein in American technology giants.