Google must sell its flagship Chrome browser, government prosecutors argue, in a bid to level the internet search playing field.
Department of Justice (DoJ) lawyers are calling for Google to sell off Chrome, as part of an anti-competition ruling in August this year. The company currently accounts for about 90% of the online search market, and the DoJ is eager to break up the search giant’s monopoly.
In addition to the proposed sale, Google must also make a number of other concessions, including halting its lucrative corporate contracts, and will be banned from re-entering the browser market for five years. With President-elect Donald Trump set to take office in January, Google will hope the upcoming change of administration will result in greater leniency – despite the fact that the DoJ case was filed against them during Trump’s first term.
DoJ Demands Google Sell Prized Asset
Government lawyers are demanding that Google sells Chrome, the world’s most popular search engine, as part of a series of proposals to loosen the tech giant’s stranglehold on the online search market.
In a Wednesday court filing, the DoJ recommended that Google also cease from entering into corporate contracts, which install its search engine as the default browser on many smartphones and devices. District Judge Amit Mehta will issue his ruling next summer.
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Says the court filing: “Google’s unlawful behavior has deprived rivals not only of critical distribution channels but also distribution partners who could otherwise enable entry into these markets by competitors in new and innovative ways,” The Guardian reports. The company is expected to issue its own set of counterproposals in December.
Government Crusade Nears Endgame
The DoJ is pulling no punches in its quest to break up Google’s monopoly. Among its extensive list of proposals, the company must also allow its Android operating system to be subjected to court oversight. This will prevent Google from using its ecosystem to “favor its general search services and search text ad monopolies,” according to BBC.
The proposals follow a landmark August ruling in which Judge Mehta concluded that the company had violated antitrust laws. By spending billions to land exclusive contracts with the likes of Apple and Samsung, Google had stifled the potential of competitors such as Microsoft Bing, and elevated its search engine to de facto status around the world.
Unsurprisingly, Google has blasted the DoJ’s recommendations. Said Kent Walker, President of Global Affairs: “[The] DoJ’s wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court’s decision.” It is expected to issue a series of countermeasures in December.
Google Looks to Trump for Leniency
Trump’s second term is inching closer, and largely, the tech sector is delighted, with onlookers expecting an administration favorable to domestic business efforts and tough on foreign imports. As a part of this, many in the industry hope that Trump will cast a light touch over the business sector where regulation is concerned.
In an attempt to curry favor, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai was quick to congratulate the 47th President of the US, and has since taken part in a three-way call with the President-elect and his right-hand man, Elon Musk. During an appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast, meanwhile, Trump claimed that Pichai has gone to great lengths to congratulate him for his infamous McDonald’s stunt in October.
Undoubtedly, Google is hopeful that the new government will prove more lenient than the Biden-Harris Administration, which has been characterized by a series of high-profile lawsuits against leading players in the Big Tech space. It must be noted, however, that the present anticompetition ruling was launched during the final months of Trump’s first term, and it is unlikely that the President-elect would back down at this stage. As such, Google will have to brace itself, with an historic decision looming.
