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The United States Department of Justice argued on Wednesday that Google should split its Chrome browser as part of a solution to end the company’s illegal monopoly on internet search, according to a filing in the US District Court for the District of Columbia. Google will not be allowed to re-enter the search market for five years if the DOJ’s proposed remedy is approved.
Ultimately, it will be up to U.S. District Court Judge Amit Mehta to decide what Google’s final punishment will be, a decision that could change one of the world’s largest businesses and change the structure of the Internet as we know it. That phase of the trial is expected to begin in 2025.
Judge Mehta ruled in August that Google was an illegal monopoly by abusing its power in the search business. The judge also challenged Google’s control over various Internet access methods and the company’s payments to third parties to maintain its status as an automated search engine.
A recent DOJ filing suggested that Google’s ownership of Android and Chrome, which are key distribution channels for its search business, poses a “significant challenge” to implementing remedies to make the search market more competitive.
The Justice Department has proposed other remedies for the search giant’s bankruptcy, including for Google to ditch its Android mobile operating system. The filing noted that Google and other partners may oppose that and propose stronger remedies, including not using Android to cripple its search rivals. The DOJ stated that if Google fails to put restrictions on Android, it should be forced to sell it.
Prosecutors also said the company should be prohibited from entering into third-party contracts that do not involve browser or phone companies, such as Google’s contract with Apple, which would be the default search engine for all Apple products.
The DOJ also argued that Google should license its search data and ad click data to competitors.
In addition, the DOJ also wrote conditions that prevent Google from re-entering the browser market five years after the company launched Chrome. And, it also suggested that after the sale of Chrome, Google should not acquire or own any competing text search, query-based AI product, or ad technology. In addition, the document outlined provisions for publishers to opt out of Google using their data to train AI models.
If the court accepts these solutions, Google will face serious problems as a competitor of OpenAI, Microsoft, and Anthropic in AI technology.
Google’s answer
In response, Google said the DOJ’s latest filing is a “strong interventionist agenda” that will harm the US people and the country’s technological prowess in the world.
“The DOJ’s outrageous proposal goes beyond the Court’s decision. It could disrupt the range of Google products — even beyond Search — that people love and find useful in their daily lives,” Google’s president of global affairs and chief legal officer Kent Walker said in a blog post.
Walker made additional arguments that this proposal would put the security and privacy of users at risk, damage the quality of Chrome and Android, and harm services such as Mozilla Firefox, which depends on Google Search.
He added that if the proposal passes, it will interfere with people’s ability to access Google Search. Also, it will hurt the company’s chances in the AI race.
“The DOJ’s approach will lead to unprecedented government intrusion that could harm American consumers, developers and small businesses — and jeopardize America’s much-needed economic and technological leadership,” he said.
The company is expected to file its response to the filing next month.
Wednesday’s filing confirms earlier reports that prosecutors were considering forcing Google to open Chrome, which controls about 61% of the browser market in the US, according to web traffic service StatCounter.
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