U.S. District Court Judge Amit Mehta has denied Apple‘s emergency motion to stay a lawsuit over Google’s search monopoly that could destroy their lucrative search business, reportedly worth up to $18 billion a year. Judge Mehta said Apple had not demonstrated satisfactory grounds for its emergency motion to stay, which was filed on January 30.
Last week, Apple said that it needed to participate in the lawsuit against Google because it did not want to lose “the opportunity to protect its right to reach other agreements with Google that could benefit millions of users, as well as Apple’s right to compensation for distributing Google search to its users.”
The remedies phase of the case is scheduled for April, and the DOJ lawyers argue that Google should be forced to sell Chrome, with the possibility of spinning off Android if necessary. Although Google will still appeal the ruling, the remedies proposed by the company focus on canceling the license agreements that bundle apps and services together.
“Because Apple has not satisfied the ‘stringent requirements’ for ‘extraordinary relief’ in the form of a stay pending appeal, its motion is denied,” Judge Mehta said in his ruling. Judge Mehta explains that Apple has “failed to demonstrate a likelihood of success on the merits” of its motion for a stay. This includes the absence of clear evidence that Apple will suffer “definite and extensive” harm.
Google has been found liable for an illegal monopoly on general search, and a remedy phase of the trial is scheduled for April, in which Google’s Android, Chrome, and Search divisions could be disbanded.
