The Google logo is seen outside a building housing Google offices in Beijing on February 4, 2025. China on February 4 said it would probe US tech giant Google over violations of anti-monopoly laws after Washington slapped 10 percent levies on Chinese goods.
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Alphabet shares rose nearly 6% in premarket trading on Wednesday as investors viewed the result of Google’s antitrust case as broadly favorable to the tech giant.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) had proposed a sort of break-up of Google, which included divesting its Chrome browser, in an antitrust case that began in September 2023.
While Google was last year found to hold an illegal monopoly in its core market of internet search, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled against the most severe consequences that were proposed by the DOJ.
Google will not have to divest Chrome. The company can also still make payments to companies to preload products, but it cannot have exclusive contracts that condition payments or licensing.
That means Google will still be able to pay Apple the billions of dollars it does to be the default search engine on iPhones.
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— CNBC’s Jennifer Elias contributed to this report.
