Google has won the right to continue its $20 billion settlement with Apple in a US antitrust case. A federal district court ruled that Google must continue to pay Apple to be the default search engine in Safari.

Google and Apple’s agreement will continue

Judge Amit Mehta stated that banning Google from making payments to its distribution partners would have serious consequences. He stated that such a ban would negatively impact not only companies but also markets and consumers. Therefore, Google was allowed to continue making payments.

This decision directly affects not only Apple but also companies like Mozilla, which have similar agreements with Google. Mozilla’s chief financial officer previously stated that Firefox could face difficulties without the agreement.

The court also ruled that Google is not required to display a preference screen in its products. This means users will not have to choose a search engine when they first turn on their devices; Google will remain the default. However, the decision is not a complete victory for Google. The company will be forced to share some of its search data with its competitors.

The same judge who declared Google a monopolist last year issued this ruling as part of the “remedies” process. Google plans to appeal the ruling.

This decision provided temporary relief to Google’s business model, but the company’s legal battle is far from over. The court’s decision to declare Google a monopolist and yet allow the agreement to proceed demonstrates that the court is seeking a balance between market competition and existing business agreements. The exact outcome of the legal process remains to be seen.