After its victory against the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Google parent company, Alphabet is now seeing its fortunes grow. Alphabet hit just over $3 trillion dollars in market cap on Monday as investors continue to reward it after a federal judge declined to break the company up.
In 2020 and 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice filed two major antitrust lawsuits against Google, challenging its dominance in search and digital advertising. In the search case, the DOJ argued that Google illegally maintained its monopoly by securing default status on devices and browsers through exclusive contracts, making it nearly impossible for rivals to compete.
In August 2024, a federal court ruled that Google had violated Section 2 of the Sherman Antitrust Act by using exclusionary agreements to preserve its dominance in general search services and search advertising — a major legal defeat and one of the most significant antitrust rulings in decades.
The remedies phase concluded the following month. The court barred Google from entering exclusive search distribution contracts on platforms such as Chrome, Android, and the Gemini app. It also ordered the company to share certain index and user interaction data with qualified competitors and to provide search and search-text ad syndication services to smaller rivals, giving them access to parts of Google’s infrastructure.
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Crucially, the court rejected calls to break up Google or require divestitures of Chrome or Android, and declined to mandate a “choice screen” for users selecting a default search engine.
In the ad tech case, Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled in April that Google held illegal monopolies in two key advertising markets: publisher ad servers and ad exchanges. The court found that Google unlawfully tied the two services, disadvantaging competitors and harming publishers and advertisers.
While final remedies are still under discussion, the findings of monopoly power and illegal conduct are now legally established. Taken together, the rulings mark major victories for U.S. antitrust enforcement and impose lasting structural obligations on Google, particularly in its contracts, data access, and platform neutrality.
On Sept. 2, U.S. District Court Judge Amit P. Mehta outlined softer-than-feared remedies for his year-ago ruling that Google maintained an illegal monopoly in search. The DOJ had proposed stronger remedies, including that Alphabet-owned Google be forced to sell Chrome. Tech companies like Perplexity and Ecosia lined up with unsolicited bids. But that possibility has been nixed.
Google also seems to have big plans for the UK. Google said on Tuesday it would make £5 billion pounds ($6.80 billion) in new investments into Britain ahead of President Donald Trump’s state visit to the country, which is expected to feature a flurry of business deals and partnerships.
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The outcome of the Justice Department’s antitrust lawsuits, while a legal setback, ultimately solidifies Google’s — and by extension, Alphabet’s — market dominance. By avoiding a forced breakup and facing softer-than-expected remedies, Google retains control of core assets such as Chrome and Android.
The regulatory outcome reassures investors that Alphabet’s business model remains intact, helping drive its valuation past $3 trillion. While the company will face heightened scrutiny and new obligations, including data-sharing requirements and limits on exclusive contracts, those measures are modest compared with the structural overhauls once under consideration.
For Alphabet, the result creates a more stable regulatory environment while preserving its competitive edge in search and digital advertising. The market’s strong response reflects confidence in the company’s ability to comply with the court’s requirements without sacrificing profitability or growth.
Beyond Google’s cash cow of search, its cloud computing business is also growing rapidly on the strength of its AI offerings. Alphabet now joins Nvidia ($4.3 trillion), Microsoft ($3.8 trillion) and Apple ($3.5 trillion) in the three-trillion club with Amazon next up but a lap behind ($2.5 trillion).