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Apple Files Emergency Motion to Protect Search Partnership with Google

By  |  February 2, 2025

Apple has filed an emergency motion with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, seeking to safeguard its business arrangements amid the ongoing Google search antitrust case. According to The Verge, the motion, submitted late Thursday, requests a stay on potential remedies that the Department of Justice (DOJ) may impose following its victory against Google. These remedies could include breaking up the tech giant’s Chrome browser or Android operating system.

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    Apple is urging the court to issue a ruling by February 4, arguing that failure to do so could leave the company unable to defend itself during the remedies phase of the trial. Per The Verge, Apple stated in its filing that if its appeal is not resolved in time, the company could be relegated to a passive role, unable to challenge measures that would prohibit it from engaging in any commercial arrangements with Google for the next decade. Apple contends that such restrictions would not only impact its business model but also deprive millions of users of potential benefits derived from its agreements with Google.

    This legal maneuver underscores Apple’s determination to protect the billions of dollars it receives from Google to maintain Google Search as the default option on its devices. The motion follows a setback earlier this week when Bloomberg Law reported that Judge Amit Mehta rejected Apple’s previous request to formally join the case as a party alongside Google. The court had initially ruled last August that Google maintained an illegal monopoly in the online search and advertising markets, highlighting the substantial payments—$26.3 billion in 2021 alone—made to partners like Apple to sustain its dominance.

    Read more: Apple’s Antitrust Appeal Meets Resistance in German Court

    Google, however, has pushed back against the DOJ’s claims, arguing in its appeal that the government’s market definition fails to account for competition from other digital advertising platforms, including Amazon, Meta, and Criteo. The company insists that its display advertising business faces significant challenges and slow revenue growth due to increasing competition.

    The DOJ has proposed stringent measures to curb Google’s influence, including forcing the sale of Chrome, barring the company from reentering the browser market for five years, and prohibiting investments in potential competitors within the search and advertising sectors. Additionally, The Verge notes that the DOJ is seeking to ensure that Google cannot leverage Android to favor its own services, which could have widespread implications for both Google and its partners, including Apple.

    As the legal battle unfolds, Apple’s emergency motion represents a strategic effort to retain its lucrative partnership with Google while attempting to mitigate the fallout from the DOJ’s aggressive antitrust campaign. The coming weeks will be pivotal in determining the future of one of the most consequential relationships in the tech industry.

    Source: The Verge