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A federal judge hammered key elements of Googles defense on Thursday as closing arguments began in a landmark antitrust trial that could potentially upend the tech giants online search empire.

Judge Amit Mehta, who is expected to rule later this year on whether Google has maintained an illegal monopoly over the online search market, zeroed in on the companys claims that it faces stiff competition despite holding an approximately 90% market share.

Googles lawyers pointed to smaller search engines such as privacy-focused DuckDuckGo, tech giants like Microsoft and Amazon and even media outlets such as ESPN as opponents in the race for user eyeballs.

“You really think that DuckDuckGo is a competitor on Google?” the judge askedGoogle’s lawyers, according to AFP.

DuckDuckGo holds a less than 3% market share compared to Googles 90% share, according to stats that surfaced during the trial.

Mehta also questioned whether rival search engines could be able to offer similar default deal packages to other companies, given the multi-billion-dollar price tag established by Google.

The exchange was just one example of sharp questions that Mehta aimed at both Google and the Justice Departments legal team.

Mehta raised questions as to whether the DOJs legal team had sufficiently shown that Googles default deals have had anti-competitive effects on rivals or stifled their ability to innovate.

Closing arguments will conclude on Friday.

DOJ antitrust chief Jonathan Kanter and Google president of global affairs Kent Walker were among the figures in attendance in court.

The Justice Department has argued that Google relied on billions in payments to partners — including $26.3 billion in 2021 alone — to ensure its search engine was enabled by default on most smartphones.

The judge warned that government attorneys faced a hard road to prove that Google had failed to innovate in online search over the last decade.

At one point during the hearing, Mehta pointed out that Microsoft admitted it did not put enough resources into building its mobile search business.

“That’s not anticompetitive, the fact that Google was smart enough to get on the mobile bandwagon before Microsoft,” Mehta said.

A Justice Department attorney fired back, asserting that a mistake by one rival doesnt mean Google gets to monopolize this market forever.

Last falls trial included appearances by several high-profile witnesses, including Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and key Apple executive Eddy Cue.

Unredacted documents from Cue’s testimony that surfaced Tuesday showed Google paid a whopping $20 billion to Apple in 2022 alone to be the default search engine on its Safari web browser.

If Mehta eventually rules against Google, a second trial will be held to determine an appropriate remedy to address the monopoly.

Experts have said that could include the implementation of a choice screen for users or even a breakup of Googles business.

Google isnt the only tech giant in the midst of federal antitrust proceedings.

The Justice Department filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple earlier this year.

Separately, the Federal Trade Commission has pending actions against Meta and Amazon.

With Post wires

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Entertainment

King Of The Hill and Parks And Recreation actor Jonathan Joss shot dead in Texas

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King Of The Hill and Parks And Recreation actor Jonathan Joss shot dead in Texas

An actor who appeared in animated series King Of The Hill and hit show Parks And Recreation has been shot dead near his home.

Jonathan Joss, 59, was found injured by police in San Antonio, Texas, on Sunday evening.

Officers tried to save him but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

The actor’s husband claimed the gunman shouted “violent homophobic slurs” before opening fire, and that Joss had pushed him out the way to save his life.

“He was murdered by someone who could not stand the sight of two men loving each other,” alleged Tristan Kern de Gonzales on Facebook.

He said the couple had previously faced harassment from neighbours, much of it “openly homophobic”.

Joss’s husband said they had been checking for mail at his old home – which earlier this year burned down in a fire that killed their three dogs – when they noticed the skull of one of the animals in front of the property.

He said they began “yelling and crying” and claimed they were approached by a man who threatened them with a gun.

“We were standing side by side,” said Mr Kern de Gonzales. “When the man fired Jonathan pushed me out of the way. He saved my life.”

However, San Antonio police said it had found no evidence that the shooting was a hate crime.

“Should any new evidence come to light, we will charge the suspect accordingly,” said a statement.

A 56-year-old man, Sigfredo Alvarez Ceja, has already been charged with murder.

Joss is best known for voicing Native American character John Redcorn in cult show King Of The Hill, which ran for 13 series and more than 250 episodes from 1997 to 2009.

He also had a recurring role in NBC’s Parks And Recreation as tribal elder and casino owner Chief Ken Hotate.

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A King Of The Hill reboot is due to start in August and Joss had been in Austin, Texas, for events promoting the comeback the day before he was killed.

He posted a video on Instagram saying he was signing autographs at a comic book store, adding that he had already worked on four episodes of the revival.

“The fans get to revisit King Of the Hill again, which I think is an amazing thing because it’s a great show,” he said in the video.

The suspect is being held in a detention centre in San Antonio, but the lawyer representing him could not be traced as they were not listed in court records.

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Business

Rachel Reeves threatens to sue Roman Abramovich over Chelsea FC sale proceeds

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Rachel Reeves threatens to sue Roman Abramovich over Chelsea FC sale proceeds

The chancellor and foreign secretary are threatening to take Roman Abramovich to court to seize the proceeds of his Chelsea FC sale.

The Russian oligarch, who is sanctioned by the UK government over his alleged links to Vladimir Putin, sold Chelsea for £2.5bn to an American consortium in 2022, after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Those funds remain in a frozen UK bank account but are meant to be used for humanitarian causes linked to the Ukraine war.

Roman Abramovich was seen by Ukraine as a potential go-between with Vladimir Putin
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Abramovich has denied close ties to Vladimir Putin. File pic: Reuters

Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Foreign Secretary David Lammy have now said they are “deeply frustrated” an agreement cannot be reached with the oligarch and will take him to court if it cannot be dealt with soon.

In a joint statement, they said: “The government is determined to see the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club reach humanitarian causes in Ukraine, following Russia’s illegal full-scale invasion.

“We are deeply frustrated that it has not been possible to reach agreement on this with Mr Abramovich so far.

“While the door for negotiations will remain open, we are fully prepared to pursue this through the courts if required, to ensure people suffering in Ukraine can benefit from these proceeds as soon as possible.”

Read more:
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"We can all see over the last months how much the world is changing, but the British government isn't just going to stand by and watch that change.
"We ought to shape it in our national interest.
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Rachel Reeves said she was ‘deeply frustrated’ an agreement had not been reached by Roman Abramovich

Abramovich was forced to sell Chelsea – which he bought for a reported £140m – after 19 years of ownership, after being sanctioned by the government over his alleged close ties to the Russian president – something he denies.

The sale was made under the supervision of the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation, under the proviso the proceeds go to humanitarian aid in Ukraine.

They cannot be moved or used without a licence from the office.

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Ukraine targets Russian military aircraft

In March, the Foreign Office said officials were in talks with Abramovich’s representatives, but multiple sources told the BBC there had been no meetings between any Labour ministers and members of the foundation set up to oversee the funds since last July’s general election.

They said there was a deadlock and a political decision by a minister is needed to negotiate and sign off an agreement.

It is not known if there have been meetings in the three months since then.

The £2.5bn – and interest accrued – would make up for some of the reduction in the aid budget, announced in February.

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World

Russians react to Ukraine’s unprecedented drone attack – as Kremlin’s silence speaks volumes

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Russians react to Ukraine's unprecedented drone attack - as Kremlin's silence speaks volumes

Ukraine’s drone attack on Russia’s long-range bombers was unprecedented, not that you’d know it from reading the Russian papers. Nor from watching the news bulletins here.

Monday’s front pages were dominated by photos of the wreckage of a road bridge collapsing on to a passenger train in the Bryansk region, after it was blown up late on Saturday night.

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Two Russian bridges collapse, killing seven people

Meanwhile, the flagship talk show on state TV here on Monday morning didn’t even mention the attack. Instead, there was just a breathless build-up to the latest round of peace talks in Istanbul.

The lack of visual coverage of the drone attack is partly because of the sensitivities around publishing images of Russian military infrastructure.

But I think it’s also because the Kremlin wants to play down the assault, which was a hugely embarrassing breach of Russia’s defences.

So where the attack is mentioned in the papers, it’s done in a way to reinforce Moscow’s narrative – that Ukraine is the aggressor out to derail the peace process.

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Ukraine targets Russian military aircraft

The Izvestia newspaper, for example, describes it as a terrorist attack, and says it “calls into question Kyiv’s readiness for de-escalation”.

There’s no reference to the scale of the damage, and there’s certainly no sense of alarm.

It’s a similar vibe on the streets of Moscow, where we meet Irina. She believes the reports of the attack are “exaggerated”.

“These planes are very old and hardly anyone needs them,” she says.

Irina in Moscow
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Irina believes the reports of Ukraine’s drone attack are ‘exaggerated’

Another passer-by, called Vladimir, says he trusts his namesake Mr Putin to respond when the time is right.

“This must be done systematically, confidently, and without any kind of nervous breakdowns, or any shows of soul,” he says.

Vladimir says he trusts the Russian president to respond in the right way
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Vladimir says he trusts the Russian president to respond in the right way

There is plenty of soul on show on social media, though, where Russia’s influential military bloggers are calling for a rapid retaliation.

One popular channel, called Dva Mayora or “Two Majors”, even said it was “a reason to launch nuclear strikes on Ukraine”.

Others are directing their anger at Russia’s military command, accusing the leadership of complacency for storing the planes out in the open.

Read more:
Putin humiliated by ‘Russia’s Pearl Harbor’ – analysis
Zelenskyy: Strikes will go ‘in history books’

A map showing the location of the Russian airbases targeted in drone strikes by Ukraine
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A map showing the location of the Russian airbases targeted in drone strikes by Ukraine

It all served to overshadow the latest round of peace talks in Istanbul, where the only concrete outcome was another prisoner exchange and the return of 6,000 dead soldiers from each side.

And if anything, the outlook for peace now is even more bleak than it was before the talks began. That’s because Russia has now presented its blueprint for a settlement, and it seemingly offers no sign of compromise at all.

According to Russian media reports, the document is a list of Moscow’s maximalist demands, including neutrality for Ukraine, limits to its army, surrender of territory and the lifting of sanctions. Only then, Russia says, would it agree to end the war.

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The Kremlin itself still hasn’t commented on the drone attack – a silence that speaks volumes. Can you imagine Downing Street doing the same if something similar happened in the UK?

There will undoubtedly be repercussions at some point, both externally and internally. So, despite the talk being of peace at the talks in Turkey, the mood is still very much one of war.

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