Verizon executive testifies Google search always pre-installed on mobile phones

The U.S. Justice Department questioned a Verizon executive about the company’s decision to always pre-install Google’s Chrome browser with Google search on its mobile phones. The government sought to prove that Google violated antitrust law in order to maintain its dominance in online search. Brian Higgins, a Verizon veteran who worked on a team from 2017 to 2023 that struck deals with Google, testified in a federal court in Washington that he believed Google’s Chrome browser was pre-installed all the time.

The government argued that Google’s annual payments of $10 billion to mobile carriers helped the tech giant secure default positions on smartphones, which in turn generated data for its online advertising business. In the opening week of the antitrust trial, James Kolotouros, a Google executive responsible for negotiating agreements with Android device makers and carriers, testified that Google pushed for its search engine and other apps to be pre-installed on Android smartphones.

Antonio Rangel, a professor at the California Institute of Technology, also testified last week, stating that people tend to stick with default services like search engines or map apps on their devices. This supports the argument that Google pays to have the default position in order to increase search queries and advertising profits. In response, Google lawyer John Schmidtlein presented data showing that users prefer to stick with Google’s search engine when it comes pre-installed on their devices.

Google’s defense is based on the claim that its market share is a result of the quality of its product, rather than any illegal actions to create monopolies. The outcome of this antitrust trial could have significant implications for the future of the internet, which is currently dominated by a few major players that have faced scrutiny from Congress and antitrust enforcers since the Trump administration. These companies have defended themselves by highlighting that their services are either free or inexpensive.

If Google is found to have violated the law, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta will determine how best to resolve the issue. He may order Google to stop the found illegal practices or even require the company to sell some of its assets.

Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Paul Simao