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Google can keep its Chrome browser but will be barred from exclusive contracts

(www.cnbc.com)
858 points colesantiago | 13 comments | 02 Sep 25 20:26 UTC | HN request time: 0.001s | source | bottom
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fidotron ◴[02 Sep 25 21:05 UTC] No.45109040[source]▶
This is an astonishing victory for Google, they must be very happy about it.

They get basically everything they want (keeping it all in the tent), plus a negotiating position on search deals where they can refuse something because they can't do it now.

Quite why the judge is so concerned about the rise of AI factoring in here is beyond me. It's fundamentally an anticompetitive decision.

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stackskipton ◴[02 Sep 25 21:13 UTC] No.45109143[source]▶
Feels like judge was looking for any excuse not to apply harsh penalty and since Google brought up AI as competitor, the judge accepted it as acceptable excuse for very minor penalty.
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judge2020 ◴[02 Sep 25 21:22 UTC] No.45109230[source]▶
I mean, it’s a legitimate concern. Google is bleeding so hard right now from Gen Z and especially Gen Alpha deciding to use ChatGPT first and foremost when asking questions that Google would’ve answered previously. Whether or not that means they should keep Chrome as a product is up for debate.
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stackskipton ◴[02 Sep 25 21:28 UTC] No.45109287[source]▶
Under good Monopoly law, you would remedy the situation that got them to this point, not worry about their future. Chrome + Deals got to them to this point so that's what you unwind. If it causes Google to get weakened and AI finishes them off, that's just creative destruction at work and oh well.
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1. xnx ◴[02 Sep 25 21:31 UTC] No.45109320[source]▶
The ease with which a total newcomer was able to steal share from Google is real-world evidence that there wasn't really a monopoly and that Google competitors (Bing, etc.) just sucked and didn't want to spend the money to be better.
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2. stackskipton ◴[02 Sep 25 21:38 UTC] No.45109413[source]▶
Well, courts disagree with your assessment and so do I. Yes, AI is a threat to Google. How much a threat remains to be seen. From normies I know, most of them are just using Gemini or whatever is on Google front page. They are not starting most of their searches on OpenAI or other ones.
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3. arccy ◴[02 Sep 25 21:50 UTC] No.45109564[source]▶
ChatGPT feels like it's in a lot of day to day conversations these days, you even hear people mention it on the street in non tech cities
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4. makeitdouble ◴[02 Sep 25 22:08 UTC] No.45109760[source]▶
You make it sound like some AI company snapped 5% of global search traffic from Google across all devices. What's the actual number ?
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5. kevin_thibedeau ◴[02 Sep 25 22:49 UTC] No.45110123[source]▶
Courts also decided you couldn't bundle a web browser and then turned a blind eye when it's done on a different platform with draconian restrictions against even installing an alternate browser.
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6. otterley ◴[02 Sep 25 23:33 UTC] No.45110485{3}[source]▶
They didn't "turn[] a blind eye" as they weren't asked the question again. There was no legal precedent established by the Microsoft case that required all future operating systems to have a replaceable browser engine. Also, the factual situations were quite different: Microsoft had a de facto monopoly on PC OSes in the late 1990s, while Apple never had a monopoly on mobile devices.
7. 1121redblackgo ◴[02 Sep 25 23:35 UTC] No.45110499[source]▶
I'd hazard a guess much higher than 5%
8. flappyeagle ◴[02 Sep 25 23:46 UTC] No.45110592[source]▶
You sound old. No one I know under the age of 30 uses Google. It’s all ChatGPT
9. fourthark ◴[02 Sep 25 23:59 UTC] No.45110679[source]▶
I asked Grok and Gemini and they both said there have been reports that Google search has dropped below 90% for the first time, so it’s significant but it’s like a 1-2% drop.
10. 8note ◴[03 Sep 25 01:24 UTC] No.45111248[source]▶
isnt the monopoly on ads, not search?
11. attendant3446 ◴[03 Sep 25 07:25 UTC] No.45113152{3}[source]▶
Another thing I've noticed is that many people refer to everything as 'ChatGPT', regardless of which 'AI' they're using.
12. darkwater ◴[03 Sep 25 07:33 UTC] No.45113195{3}[source]▶
ChatGPT has for sure the "first mover" strength for normies (you can hear it mentioned in TV, radio and in the street, but also lot of people just talk about "AI". So, IMO there is still space to be used as "the AI" rather then specifically ChatGPT. It might also just be always referred to "ChatGPT" when talking about another provider, just like people saying "Kleenex" when referring to tissues.
13. troyvit ◴[03 Sep 25 15:22 UTC] No.45116875[source]▶
They stole share from Google because search is becoming obsolete, not because a new search engine came to town. It's like saying 5G stole market share from AOL's dial-up business. Search still has a use, and Google still takes > 90% of all search, so it's still a monopoly, and I'll add that Google is trying to leverage that monopoly to expand Gemini.