After years of anticipation, a trial next week in Washington, D.C., will attempt to answer a critical question: Did Google break antitrust laws by striking deals with companies like Apple and Samsung to make its search engine the default on their products?
Those business arrangements are expected to be at the heart of the 10-week trial, which will shed new light on Google’s path to dominating the search market and will test the U.S. government’s ability to rein in technology companies. There are already inauspicious signs for that effort: A federal judge has narrowed the scope of the case, sparking criticism for showing too much deference toward Google. Whatever the outcome, reams of documents, correspondence and other evidence will at the very least offer a window into the secret deals, estimated to be worth billions annually, that have helped Google retain its iron grip on the search market.
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