Alphabet's Google pays more than $10 billion annually to retain its position as the default engine searchς σε προγράμματα περιήγησης και κινητές συσκευές, καταπνίγοντας κάθε ανταγωνισμό, δήλωσε την Τρίτη το Υπουργείο Δικαιοσύνης των ΗΠΑ κατά την έναρξη μιας αντιμονοπωλιακής δίκης στην Ουάσιγκτον.
"This case is about the future of the Internet and whether Google's search engine will ever face meaningful competition," Kenneth Dintzer, a government lawyer, said in his opening statement.
"The evidence will show that they are asking for default exclusivity to block their opponents." Dintzer said that Google has become a monopoly since at least 2010 and today controls more than 89% of the Internet search market.
"The company pays billions because it's uniquely powerful," he said.
"For the past 12 years, Google has abused its monopoly on general search." Its monopoly is the first to pit the federal government against a US technology company in more than two decades.
The Justice Department and 52 US state attorneys general allege that Google is illegally maintaining its monopoly by paying billions to tech rivals, smartphone makers and carriers wirelessinstead of being set as the default option or default on mobile phones and browsers.
