Google CEO Sundar Pichai Testifies in Antitrust Trial

Google CEO Sundar Pichai testified on Monday in the antitrust trial brought against the company by the U.S. government. Pichai defended Google’s business tactics, including its deal with Apple and other partners to make Google the default search engine.

Government Demands Trial to Halt Google’s Monopoly

The Department of Justice and eight states, including New York, California, and Colorado, demanded a jury trial in the lawsuit against Google. The lawsuit seeks to halt Google’s anticompetitive practices and restore competition to the digital advertising market.

Google’s Defense: Just Doing Business

Google argues that its actions are simply part of doing business. The company claims that everyone wants Google as the default search engine because it’s the best, and that doesn’t make their actions illegal.

Google’s Deals and Expenditures Revealed in Trial

The trial hearing on Monday revealed interesting details, including the $26.3 billion that Google spent in 2021 to become the default search engine across various platforms. Google’s search head, Prabhakar Raghavan, testified that a significant portion of that amount went directly to Apple.

The Value of Defaults: Google’s Strategy Revealed

Google understood the value of defaults early on. An email from a 2007 meeting showed that when people changed their browser homepage to Google, they did 15% more searches. Google believes focusing on homepage market share is essential to gain search market share.

Google’s Attempt to Preinstall Chrome on iPhones

During the trial, it came to light that Google tried to convince Apple to preinstall Google on every iOS device in 2018. The goal was to create a strong connection between Google and Apple’s services, benefiting both companies. However, Apple did not agree to the proposal.

Google’s Deletion of Chat Logs under Scrutiny

The DOJ questioned Google’s policy of deleting internal chat messages, even when subject to a litigation hold. Google CEO Sundar Pichai stated that action was taken in February to comply with the DOJ’s litigation hold.

The Hypocrisy of Default Settings

Google’s legal chief, David Drummond, once criticized Microsoft’s Internet Explorer for becoming the default search engine in 2005, calling it anticompetitive. The DOJ highlighted this hypocrisy, drawing parallels to Google’s current situation.

The Outcome and Implications

The trial is expected to continue for several weeks. If ruled against, Google may be required to change its behavior and share its data with other search engines. The outcome could have implications for other ongoing antitrust cases against tech giants like Amazon, Apple, and Facebook.