The US Department of Justice launched the long-running legal proceedings during the final months of the first Trump administration in October 2020, supported by 11 states attorneys general.

In an August 2024 ruling, the US District Court for the District of Columbia found in a landmark ruling that Google “is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly”.

DOJ lawyers had urged the court to address Google’s “ownership and control of Chrome and Android — key methods for the distribution of search engines to consumers” following the findings.

However, the court yesterday opted for more lenient remedies, prohibiting Google from making certain exclusive deals to distribute its services and requiring it to share more data with rivals and potential rivals.

Commenting, US attorney general Pamela Bondi said: “This decision marks an important step forward in the Department of Justice’s ongoing fight to protect American consumers.

“Under President Trump’s leadership, we will continue our legal efforts to hold companies accountable for monopolistic practices.”

Assistant attorney general Abigail Slater, of the DOJ’s antitrust division, added: “The first Trump administration sued Google to restore competition for millions of Americans subjected to Google’s monopoly abuses. Today, the second Trump administration has won a remedy to do just that.

“We will continue to review the opinion to consider the Department’s options and next steps regarding seeking additional relief. I am immensely proud of the dedicated public servants of the antitrust division and their tireless work on this case alongside our state partners.”

In a statement, Lee-Anne Mulholland, Google’s vice-president for regulatory affairs, said: “Today’s decision recognises how much the industry has changed through the advent of AI, which is giving people so many more ways to find information.

“This underlines what we’ve been saying since this case was filed in 2020: competition is intense and people can easily choose the services they want. That’s why we disagree so strongly with the court’s initial decision in August 2024 on liability.

“Now the court has imposed limits on how we distribute Google services, and will require us to share Search data with rivals.

“We have concerns about how these requirements will impact our users and their privacy, and we’re reviewing the decision closely.

“The court did recognise that divesting Chrome and Android would have gone beyond the case’s focus on search distribution, and would have harmed consumers and our partners.

“As always, we’re continuing to focus on what matters — building innovative products that people choose and love.”