The action taken by the US Department of Justice is actually intended to break Google’s market power. However, the planned measures could have the opposite effect – and further consolidate the company’s supremacy. In August 2024, a US court ruled that Google was defending its search engine monopoly by unfair means, for example through deals worth billions to appear as the default search engine.
Breaking up the monopoly jeopardises competition ⚠️
Google’s browser competitor Mozilla, of all companies, could suffer from the measures, CFO Eric Muhlheim warned in court. The planned ban on Google paying for preset search engine positions in browsers is particularly critical, reports The Verge.
Firefox depends on Google money đź’°
Mozilla is heavily dependent on the millions that Google pays to be the default search engine in Firefox. In 2022, 86 per cent of Mozilla’s 593 million dollar turnover came from this deal. Future requirements could also force Google to sell Chrome and pass on search results to competitors – with consequences for Firefox too.
Firefox faces extinction without Google đźš«
Without Google’s money, Mozilla would have to make massive savings, especially in the further development of Firefox. This would make the browser less attractive and push it out of the market, warned Muhlheim. This would tend to increase Google’s dominance – especially as Mozilla’s Gecko engine is the last independent one on the market.
Google replacement failed so far❌
Attempts to replace Google with Yahoo or Bing brought Mozilla less revenue and cost users. It is uncertain whether Muhlheim’s warnings will prevent Google from being broken up. In any case, Mozilla fears that strong competition for Google will come late – possibly too late for Firefox.
Can Google’s power be successfully dismantled without jeopardising smaller competitors such as Firefox? 🤔 Join the discussion in the comments! 👇💬
