Alphabet Inc.’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, mentioned that it will likely take several years to settle Google’s antitrust disputes, suggesting that they don’t pose an immediate threat to the company’s operations.
In an interview for an upcoming episode of “The David Rubenstein Show: Peer to Peer Conversations,” Pichai stated, “The process will take time to unfold. Where we believe it impacts our ability to innovate for users, we will defend ourselves vigorously.”
Google is currently involved in two antitrust cases initiated by the US Justice Department, accusing the company of unlawfully dominating the online advertising and search markets. The ads trial began this month, while the search case, which Google lost, is in the final stages with Judge Amit Mehta aiming to resolve the remaining issues by August.
“We strongly disagree with the decision, but it is still in the remedies phase,” Pichai explained, referring to the stage where the court decides how to address Google’s market dominance. “We plan to appeal, and this legal process could extend for many years.”
The government’s legal timeline differs from the rapid pace of change in the tech industry, something the Justice Department is taking into account in its analysis. Meanwhile, Google is making swift progress in artificial intelligence, and by the time the current legal cases are resolved, the industry will have transformed significantly.
It may take several months before Judge Leonie Brinkema reaches a decision on the ads case, which accuses Google of violating antitrust laws by establishing a monopoly over web advertising technology. If the government succeeds, it plans to break up the company and compel the sale of some assets. Google would likely appeal, maintaining that it has competed fairly against other companies like Meta Platforms Inc.’s Facebook and Amazon.com Inc.
To illustrate how long the appeals process can be, Pichai referred to Google’s recent success in overturning a €1.5 billion ($1.7 billion) antitrust fine in the European Union General Court, which took over four years to resolve.
I believe scrutiny is unavoidable given our size and scope, added Pichai. We’ll succeed in the long run because we’re committed to using technology to innovate.
Catch the full interview with Sundar Pichai on “The David Rubenstein Show: Peer to Peer Conversations,” airing Wednesday, October 9, on Bloomberg Television at 9 PM New York time.