U.S. court allows Google to keep Chrome in antitrust case

A U.S. federal court has allowed Google to retain ownership of its Chrome browser and Android operating system, Bloomberg reports, citing case filings.

This means the company avoided being forced to sell key assets. Google will also be permitted to continue paying smartphone manufacturers to pre-install its search engine, though the court prohibited exclusive agreements. Notably, the existing deal with Apple will remain in place, keeping Google as the default search engine in Safari.

At the same time, the company was ordered to grant competitors access to its data for six years. Among those set to benefit are Microsoft, DuckDuckGo, OpenAI, and Perplexity.

The ruling is preliminary, with a final verdict expected on September 10, 2025. The antitrust probe against Google began under the Biden administration. In August 2024, the court declared Google a monopoly in the search market. By December, the U.S. Justice Department sought to split the company’s business, forcing it to sell Chrome and grant access to its search and advertising data.

In response, Google proposed an alternative: ending exclusive deals with partners as a way to reduce its dominance. The court accepted the compromise but imposed several restrictions that will remain in place.