The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has proposed that Google sell its Chrome web browser and possibly the Android mobile operating system.
This suggestion is part of a larger effort to address the company’s alleged monopoly in online search.
In a 23-page brief submitted to the U.S. District Court in Washington D.C., the DOJ outlined extensive measures to dismantle what it claims are Google’s illegal monopolies in general search services and search text advertising.
DOJ Seeks Divestiture of Chrome & Possibly Android
The DOJ’s proposal centers on the divestiture of the Chrome browser, which the agency claims has strengthened Google’s dominance in the search market.
The DOJ wrote in its filing:
“To address these challenges, Google must divest Chrome, which has ‘fortified [Google’s] dominance,’ so that rivals may pursue distribution partnerships that this ‘realit[y] of control’ today prevents.”
The DOJ suggested that Google should sell the Android mobile operating system if behavioral remedies to prevent self-preferencing practices do not restore competition.
However, the DOJ acknowledged that the divestiture of Android “may draw significant objections from Google or other market participants.”
In addition to the structural breakup, the DOJ is seeking a range of conduct remedies, including:
Prohibiting Google from entering into exclusivity agreements
Banning self-preferencing of its search products
Mandating data sharing with rivals
Establishing a Technical Committee to monitor compliance.
The proposed judgment would remain in effect for 10 years.
Google Responds To DOJ’s Proposal
Google swiftly condemned the DOJ’s proposal, calling it a “radical interventionist agenda” that would harm innovation and America’s global technology leadership.