Big Tech could be in for a big shakeup following a ruling by a federal judge that stated that Google is functioning in a capacity that gives it an illegal monopoly over internet search, as Politico reported.

The shocking ruling was handed down in an anti-trust case concerning the tech giant's capabilities. The judge's Monday ruling could be foreshadowing a change in the internet as we see it today.

“After having carefully considered and weighed the witness testimony and evidence, the court reaches the following conclusion: Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly,” US District Judge Amit Mehta said in the opinion. “It has violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act.”

The Reasons

While it's as yet unclear what the legal impact of the ruling will be, the judge did offer some clarification and reasoning behind his decision.

"Specifically, the court holds that (1) there are relevant product markets for general search services and general search text ads; (2) Google has monopoly power in those markets …" Judge Mehta's ruling stated.

Additionally, the court ruled that "(3) Google’s distribution agreements are exclusive and have anticompetitive effects; and (4) Google has not offered valid procompetitive justifications for those agreements."

The court also stated that Google is able to charge "supracompetitive prices for general search text ads" due to the monology that it possesses, and that the firm has been able to "earn monopoly profits" as a result of the company's practice of this behavior.

Google's Connections

According to Mehta, Google has been able to establish an anticompetitive mobile environment to the extent that it has been able to secure exclusive arrangements with Apple and other important competitors in the technology industry.

As a result of the company's efforts to vertically integrate its services across the sector, it has become increasingly difficult for other competitors to establish a footing in the search market share.

In addition, Google has been known to demand exorbitant charges for search advertisements on the internet search service.

Despite this, the judge did not conclude that the corporation had a monopoly on search advertisements when it came to search itself.

Case Details

On behalf of their citizens, each of the fifty states joined forces as plaintiffs in the case against Google and filed a lawsuit against the business under the Clayton Act, which is outlined in 15 U.S.C. § 26. Google issued a statement indicating that it intends to file an appeal against the decision.

According to Kent Walker, who serves as the president of worldwide affairs at Google, "as this process continues, we will continue to focus on making products that people find helpful and easy to use."

The Silicon Valley giant has become such an integral part of users' everyday workings online that Google long ago won "verb" status, flexing its ability to squeeze huge amounts of money from anyone hoping to be found online.

A massive change to how the company does business could not only set the internet, but small businesses in general, on its ear in pursuit of a system with the free market baked in.