Why Google faces the slice, not the chop

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

antitrust action that allow Google to take the US ruling on search in its stride. Establishing market dominance and imposing correctives takes time in court, which allows the market leader to offer concessions in a negotiated settlement. Google can very well afford to not be the default search engine on smartphones running on Android and iOS and still continue to dominate the mobile search segment.

Apple could pour more money into search, as Microsoft has done. But challenging Google in search is a daunting prospect. Android remains the market leader in mobile operating systems, where it is even more difficult to dislodge Google's search engine.

Then there's the question of breaking up Google's holding company Alphabet to house search in a different business unit.

This may not be effective because Google's dominance across a range of applications from Maps to YouTube allows the company to be carved up and yet retain incredible clout. Google search may no longer be soldered on to, say, YouTube, and it may not be allowed to pay Apple to use it. Yet, till consumers on YouTube find an alternative as good as Google search, they are likely to stick with it.

Google emerged from a pack of search engines, and remains the default option for most human interactions with the internet.

Google may have its antitrust playbook in place. Yet, multiple action across jurisdictions on different parts of the mother ship will eventually dilute its dominance. It's facing lawsuits over Android, Google Shopping, AdSense, Play Store and search, among others.

And the list will only get longer. This should progressively dilute Google's negotiating position for settlements while retaining corporate and business integrity. The US ruling on search,