Sept. 2 (UPI) -- Google will not be forced to sell off Chrome or its Android operating system, but will have to share some of its search engine data with competitors, among other remedies, a federal court ruled Tuesday in an antitrust case that found the U.S. tech giant maintained an illegal monopoly in the search engine industry.
The ruling from Judge Amit Mehta of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia is a far cry from the punishment the Justice Department had sought, instead ruling in favor of part of the remedies put forth by both sides.
While federal prosecutors had hoped for Google to be forced to divest from Chrome browser and Android, Mehta ruled that the tech behemoth may maintain ownership of those services but will be barred from entering contracts that make them -- along with other products, such as its Gemini assistant -- exclusive services for interacting with the Internet or for use on devices. The ruling, though, does allow it to make payments to distribution partners for reloading Google products.
Though many of the Justice Department's requests were turned aside, it did force Google to make available some specific sets of search and other data to rivals.
