Justice Amit Mehta has ruled that Google’s multibillion-dollar deals with companies such as Apple to make its search engine the default on smartphones and web browsers stifle competition.

These embedded search agreements allow Google to dominate the global search engine market, the judge wrote in his 286-page ruling. Annual revenue over $300 billionmainly from advertisements.

The ruling states that these agreements cover a significant portion of the search market and limit the opportunities of competitors. It is also said that Google’s monopoly allows the company Constantly increasing the prices of online advertisingWithout facing any significant backlash from competitors.

Despite this, the judge also noted that Google does not have a monopoly in the general search advertising market. He noted that other major online platforms, such as Amazon and Walmart, have entered the search advertising space, offering competition to Google’s dominance.

The punishment has not come yet

Judge Mehta plans to hold a separate hearing to determine Google’s punishment. The U.S. Justice Department has not yet announced the specific changes it is seeking. Potential moves could include separating Alphabet’s search business from other products like Android or Chrome.

The decision could lead to the most serious corporate split in the U.S. since the collapse of telecommunications giant AT&T in 1984.