A federal judge has told Google it must limit default search and AI app contracts to one year, a change that could weaken the company’s long-standing hold on search across many devices.
The December 2025 ruling follows a 2024 finding that Google illegally monopolized online search and search advertising. Judge Amit Mehta of the US District Court for the District of Columbia said the “hard-and-fast termination requirement after one year” is needed to make antitrust relief effective.
Under the order, Google will have to renegotiate every default-placement deal each year. That includes its lucrative agreements with Apple for iPhone defaults and deals with phone makers such as Samsung. The rule is meant to give rivals a better chance to win default spots that have often been held for many years.
The judge’s decision builds on a separate order from September that required Google to share some data behind its search rankings with competitors. Although Google can still pay device makers for default placement, the new annual term reduces its ability to lock in long-term control of the search market.
The change comes as Google faces rising pressure in AI from OpenAI and newer companies. OpenAI has launched the Atlas browser based on ChatGPT. Other AI-based browsers and tools that could challenge Google include Perplexity AI’s Comet, Microsoft’s Edge with Copilot, and Opera One with its Aria assistant.
Google has said it will appeal several antitrust rulings, including cases on its Play Store practices and search dominance. In September, the company narrowly avoided an order to sell the Chrome browser as a remedy in another case.
Google and the Justice Department did not immediately reply to requests for comment.
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