The U.S. Department of Justice will push for Google to sell Chrome to break the monopoly. Google A's U.S. stock fell 1.2% after hours
Informed sources indicate that antitrust enforcement officials have abandoned a harsher penalty, which would have forced Google to sell its Android operating system
Is Google really going to be forced to sell the Chrome browser?
On Tuesday, November 19, Bloomberg reported that officials from the U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust division decided to recommend to Federal Judge Amit Mehta on Wednesday that Google be forced to sell the Chrome browser. Additionally, antitrust officials are seeking data licensing, artificial intelligence, and other measures to curb Google's monopoly.
According to insiders, over the past three months, government lawyers have met with dozens of companies to prepare this recommendation, and states are still considering adding some proposals, with certain details subject to change. Antitrust enforcers have abandoned a more severe penalty of forcing Google to sell the Android operating system.
If Mehta accepts this proposal, it could reshape the online search market and the artificial intelligence industry. This marks the most aggressive crackdown by the U.S. government on tech companies since the failed breakup of Microsoft twenty years ago.
According to web traffic analysis service StatCounter, Chrome holds about 61% of the market share in the U.S. and is also the most widely used browser globally— having Chrome is crucial for Google's advertising business, as Google can view the activities of logged-in users and use this data to more effectively target ads, which are the source of most of Google's revenue. Furthermore, Google also uses the Chrome browser to guide users to its flagship AI product, Gemini.
Google stated that these proposals would harm the interests of consumers and developers. Lee-Anne Mulholland, Google's Vice President of Regulatory Affairs, said:
"The Department of Justice continues to push a radical agenda that goes far beyond the legal issues of this case. The pressure the government is applying in this manner will harm consumers, developers, and America's technological leadership, which is precisely what is most needed right now."
As of the time of publication, Google's stock was down 1% in after-hours trading at $173.55 per share, having previously fallen by 1.8%.
