Key points
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Back in August, a federal judge ruled that Google violated antitrust laws.
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On Tuesday, the DOJ filed papers with the court suggesting remedies for the violations.
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Should investors be concerned?
The latest development in the DOJ’s case against Google sparked a mild selloff Wednesday.
Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) stock was dropping on Wednesday, down about 2% on the day following new developments in the U.S. Department of Justice’s case against Alphabet subsidiary Google.
Back in August, a federal judge ruled that Google had violated antitrust laws by creating an illegal monopoly with its search engine.
On Tuesday, the DOJ filed a new document that outlines various ways to address and remedy Google’s violations, including a proposal that suggests potentially breaking up the company.
“Plaintiffs have a duty to seek — and the Court has the authority to impose — an order that not only addresses the harms that already exist as a result of Google’s illegal conduct, but also prevents and restrains recurrence of the same offense of illegal monopoly maintenance going forward,” the filing states.
Should investors be concerned?
Structural remedies?
In the latest filing, the DOJ offered remedies to four categories of violations, including the key one, search distribution and revenue sharing.
“For more than a decade, Google has controlled the most popular distribution channels, leaving rivals with little-to-no incentive to compete for users,” the filing states. “Similarly, rivals cannot compete for these distribution channels because Google’s monopoly-funded revenue share payments disincentivize its partners from diverting queries to Google’s rivals. Fully remedying these harms requires not only ending Google’s control of distribution today, but also ensuring Google cannot control the distribution of tomorrow.”
Thus, the DOJ is seeking remedies to limit or prohibit default agreements, pre-installation agreements, and other revenue-sharing arrangements related to Google search.
“Similarly, Plaintiffs are considering behavioral and structural remedies that would prevent Google from using products such as Chrome, Play, and Android to advantage Google search and Google search-related products and features—including emerging search access points and features, such as artificial intelligence—over rivals or new entrants,” the filing reads.
In antitrust law, structural remedies typically include the divestiture of assets while behavioral remedies may include certain conditions. Thus, the language in the filing suggests that the DOJ is considering a remedy that could include breaking up the company. However, it should be noted that this is just one option — it doesn’t mean that this will be a remedy that the DOJ recommends.
Google’s Lee-Anne Mulholland, vice president of regulatory affairs, said splitting off Chrome of Android would break them.
“Make no mistake: Breaking them off would change their business models, raise the cost of devices, and undermine Android and Google Play in their robust competition with Apple’s iPhone and App Store,” Mulholland wrote in a blog post Wednesday.
Overall, Mulholland said that the DOJ’s proposals go “far beyond the specific legal issues in this case.” She added that the company will provide a more detailed response in court next year during its appeal.
What should investors do?
Since the August 5 antitrust ruling, Alphabet stock has actually gone up slightly, approximately 2%. So, investors have mostly taken it in stride, or at least not overreacted prematurely.
While it is a serious case that could ultimately have major implications for Google, nothing will happen any time soon, if at all. Alphabet will appeal the case, but it cannot appeal until the remedies are finalized.
According to CNBC, the judge, Amit Mehta, won’t rule on the remedies until August of 2025, and then the appeals process would delay things further. A final resolution could potentially drag on for years, and even then, Google could win the appeal, or the remedies might not be that harmful to the company.
In other words, this is just the beginning of a long process, so investors should not make any rash moves.
At this point, Alphabet stock remains a good buy, with a median price target of $202 per share. And judging by the fact that investors did not overreact to this news suggests their views haven’t changed as a result of this case, at least not yet. But it definitely bears watching over the months and years ahead for new developments.
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