Google Argues Against Justice Department Proposal to Ban Bundling Apps With AI

Google argued against a Justice Department proposal that would bar it from bundling its YouTube and Google Maps apps with its Gemini artificial intelligence (AI) service, telling a judge Wednesday (Oct. 8) that these haven’t been found to be monopoly products.

The argument came during the court battle in which the judge is developing a remedy after finding that Google has a monopoly in search and search advertising, Bloomberg reported Wednesday.

Google lawyer John Schmidtlein said in court Wednesday that there has been no finding that the company has a monopoly in the AI market or that Maps or YouTube are monopoly products, according to the report.

Judge Amit Mehta ruled in September that Google could no longer pay companies to use only its Search, Chrome browser or Google Play Store, the report said. Now the two sides are arguing over the content that will be in the judge’s final order.

The Justice Department has argued that the ruling about Search, Chrome and Google Play should also apply to Gemini, per the report.

Mehta said Wednesday that he is not certain Google should be allowed to require device makers who want access to YouTube or Google Maps to also take Gemini, the report said.

Mehta ruled in August 2024 that Google’s business practices violated antitrust laws by maintaining and abusing its monopoly power in the search and search advertising markets.

The case centered on Google’s extensive and complex business practices that, according to the plaintiffs, stifled competition and innovation. The ruling outlines how Google’s practices created barriers to entry for competitors, thereby maintaining what Mehta called its monopolistic status.

The ruling followed a nearly four-year legal battle between Google and U.S. antitrust enforcers. The Department of Justice, joined by 11 states, filed the original lawsuit in October 2020, alleging that Google used anticompetitive tactics to preserve its dominance in search and search advertising.

It was reported in May that during closing arguments over remedies in the antitrust case, the government argued that the court’s remedies for Google’s dominance in search should include curbs on the company’s ability to promote Gemini.

“The reason we are so focused on gen AI is because that is the new search access point,” Justice Department lawyer David Dahlquist said at the time.