The DOJ v. Google case — which found that Google has been violating antitrust laws related to its monopoly position in the Search Engine market — is weeks away from ending the remedy phase. Judge Mehta is expected to issue his final decision some time in August (next month).

 

Significantly for Mozilla, one of the most heavily pushed (by the DOJ) remedies would block Google from paying Mozilla for default search engine placement within Firefox. This would, effectively, end over 80% of Mozilla’s yearly revenue… and force the company to dramatically downsize.

During the court trial earlier this year, the Mozilla CFO testified that, should this happen, Mozilla “may be forced to scale back operations”.

 

At the same time as the DOJ v. Google case is moving quickly towards a conclusion, the US government has pulled Mozilla funding — resulting in renewed, desperate pleas from Mozilla, asking for donations to attempt to cover the lost tax payer revenue.

Mozilla appears to have a four pronged approach to securing funding and staying in business:

1. Fight the DOJ v. Google case (both in court and public opinion).

2. Rebrand (and re-focus) on political activism in the hopes of securing new funding sources. (They are now a “global crew of activists” focused on Marxist causes.)

3. Monetize data collected from Firefox users. (See: Firefox recently changing their Terms of Use to allow Mozilla to collect user data.)

4. Encouraging users to donate.

 

Many questions remain in this saga:

• Will Judge Mehta tell Google to stop payments for Search Engine placement? We’ll find out very soon.

• Will Google appeal after the remedies are handed down? (Most likely.)

• If so, what will the outcome of that appeal be? And how will default Search Engine payments be impacted during the appeal?

• Will Mozilla see enough success in their new business of being a “global crew of activists” to avoid significant layoffs?

According to multiple sources within Mozilla — who have spoken to The Lunduke Journal on the condition of anonymity — employees have deep concerns about the future of the company, the leadership currently in power, and the stability of their jobs through the end of this year.

Now, Mozilla has several hundred million dollars in cash on hand. Which means, even if they experience the loss of 80%+ of their revenue… they have enough runway to keep them afloat at least for a little while. But burning through savings to keep a company afloat is not a great long term strategy.

What will Mozilla look like this time next year?

Heck… what will Mozilla look like this time next month?

It’s going to be interesting to watch as this unfolds.

To all of you amazing nerds who have signed up for a new Lunduke Journal subscription today, thank you! You make The Lunduke Journal possible!

If you haven’t snagged yours yet, the “50% off everything, even the Lifetime Subscriptions” deal is available today and tomorrow (through Saturday, May 31st).

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All the details on how to grab each type of subscription is right here. There’s also an audio podcast and video of me rambling about it.

Once again, thank you for all of the support. It truly does make a difference.

-Lunduke

About 3 weeks back we had a deal where every new subscription to The Lunduke Journal was 50% off. Monthly, Yearly, Lifetime… all of it.

And — holy cow! — was that a success. Broke the record for most new subscribers to The Lunduke Journal in a single day. By a mile. Two days in a row.

Never seen anything like it. The amount of support all of you showed for truly independent Tech Journalism was off the charts.

You know what? Let’s try that again. Now through the end of May (which is Saturday, May 31st — the day after tomorrow):

• 50% off Monthly — Now $3 / Month (was $6 / Month)

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Choose whichever option feels right for you. All the details and links are below.

Every one — big or small — directly funds the work of The Lunduke Journal (with zero overhead). Every option includes full access to the community Forum. And, of course, every type of subscription keeps The Lunduke Journal ad-free and Big Tech free.

Remember: 50% off is only through Saturday, May 31st. The next day (Sunday, June 1st) the prices all go back to normal.

50% Off Yearly or Monthly Subscription:

50% off a Yearly or Monthly subscription to The Lunduke Journal are available via both Locals and Substack. (This includes full access to the community Forum.)

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Via Lunduke.Locals.com:

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The Famous Lifetime Subscription:

The "World Famous Lunduke Journal Lifetime Subscription" is exactly what it sounds like. Pay once and get full access to The Lunduke Journal. For life.

Now, through Saturday, May 31st… you can snag one at a crazy discount. Normally these are $200… but you can grab one for $100. (You can also pay more if you’d like to donate a little extra.)

The Lifetime Subscription can be obtained via Locals, Substack, or using Bitcoin. All three options work great and are super easy. Scroll down and choose your option.

How to get a Lifetime Subscription via Locals:

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If you would also like full, Lifetime access to Lunduke.Locals.com (which is included):

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How to get a Lifetime Subscription with Bitcoin:

You can also obtain a Lifetime Subscription via Bitcoin.

• Make sure you have a Lunduke.Locals.com or Lunduke.Substack.com account (a free account, to either, works just fine).

• Send $100 worth of Bitcoin (or more) to the following address:

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50% Off DRM-Free, MP4 Downloads:

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Note: This DRM-Free download option does not include access to the Forum. This option is strictly for downloading the episodes.

Make a One Time Donation

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Send any amount of BTC to the following address:

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You Make This Possible

A huge thank you to all of the subscribers who have made The Lunduke Journal possible. Because of you, we have been able to do true Tech Journalism — to tell the stories that no other Tech News outlet has the cajones to touch.

And to all of you new Lunduke Journal subscribers (which, wow, there’s a lot of you): Welcome to the last bastion of truly independent, Big-Tech-Free, ad-free, non-Woke Tech Journalism.

-Lunduke