Apple, Google Freed From Search Engine Collusion Antitrust Suit

Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc.'s Google escaped a lawsuit alleging they colluded to thwart competition in the search advertising market after the Ninth Circuit on Thursday upheld a district court’s dismissal, saying the plaintiffs didn’t sufficiently plead a conspiracy.

The ruling from the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit puts to rest claims brought by California Crane School, which alleged that Apple agreed not to compete in the search business in competition with Google.

The technology giants have been for years the subject of antitrust litigation from both private plaintiffs and federal agencies who allege they abuse their ...