Alphabet Inc., the parent company of Google, has formally appealed a historic U.S. antitrust ruling that found the tech giant illegally monopolized the search engine and search advertising markets. The appeal, filed on January 16, 2026, challenges the August 2024 decision by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta, who concluded that Google's exclusive default search agreements with Apple and smartphone manufacturers (OEMs) unlawfully reinforced its dominance.
The legal battle, which began in 2020 and went to trial in fall 2023, reached a critical point in September 2025 when Judge Mehta issued his final remedies. He rejected the Justice Department's request to force a sale of Google's Chrome browser but mandated that Google's lucrative default search deals—worth over $20 billion annually—must be rebid every year. This would open the door for competitors to compete for these crucial placements on devices like iPhones and Samsung phones.
Google's appeal is expected to delay the enforcement of these remedies for approximately 12 months while the U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit reviews the case. The company has also requested a stay, which would pause the implementation of Judge Mehta's orders entirely during the appeal process. A granted stay would preserve the status quo, where Google remains the default search engine on Chrome (with roughly 71% of global mobile browser share) and Apple's Safari (about 20%).
"People use Google because they want to, not because they’re forced to," argued Google Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland in a blog post, claiming the ruling fails to account for rapid innovation and intense competition.
The outcome has significant implications for the digital advertising landscape. With around 62% of global internet traffic coming from mobile devices, any future shift in default search placement could dramatically alter search visibility and advertising revenues. Advertisers, rival search engines, and analytics firms are already preparing contingency plans, running pilots on alternative browsers and adjusting bidding strategies for the annual auction process that could be mandated.
Investors initially reacted with caution, causing a slight dip in Alphabet (GOOGL) stock following the appeal filing. However, the stock has surged 56% since the September 2025 remedy decision, as markets viewed the court-ordered penalties as lighter than feared and remain bullish on Google's advancements in artificial intelligence.
