U.S. regulators seek federal judge dismantling google The move is to prevent the company from continuing to crush competition through its dominant search engine after a court found it had maintained an abusive monopoly over the past decade.
The proposed breakup, unveiled in a 23-page document filed late Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Justice, would force Google to sell its industry-leading Chrome web browser and give its Android smartphone software an edge to the company’s search engine. They are calling for the imposition of restrictions to prevent this.
The recommended fine follows an August ruling by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta that tarnished Google’s brand and showed how severely regulators operating under President Biden said Google should be punished. It shows what you believe. as a monopolist. Decision-makers at the Justice Department, who will take over the case after President-elect Donald Trump takes office next year, may be less harsh. A court hearing in Washington, D.C., on Google’s punishment is scheduled to begin in April, and Mehta aims to issue a final decision before Labor Day.
If Mehta accepts the Justice Department’s recommendation, Google will almost certainly appeal the punishment, prolonging a legal battle that has dragged on for more than four years.
In addition to seeking a spinoff of Chrome and lock-in of Android software, the Justice Department is also seeking a multibillion-dollar deal for Google to lock in its dominant search engine as the default option on Apple’s iPhones and other devices. They are asking a judge to prohibit them from tying the knot.
Regulators also want Google to share data it collects from people’s queries with rivals to improve its chances of competing with the tech giant.
If ordered, the measure could wreak havoc on a business expected to generate more than $300 billion in revenue this year, a money-making machine that has benefited Google’s parent company Alphabet.
In its recommendation, the Justice Department argued that “Google’s actions have created an uneven playing field and that Google’s quality reflects the disgorgement of ill-gotten gains.” “Remedies must close this gap and deprive Google of these benefits.”
It would ease the Justice Department’s efforts to break up Google, especially if President Trump takes the widely anticipated step of replacing Jonathan Canter, who was nominated by Biden to head the Justice Department’s antitrust division. The possibility remains.
The lawsuit targeting Google was originally filed in the final months of President Trump’s first term, and Kantor oversaw the high-profile case that culminated in Mehta’s ruling against Google. Kanter has joined forces with Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan to take a tough stance on Big Tech, which has led to further attempts to crack down on industry giants such as Apple, and has disrupted business transactions over the past four years. prevented its establishment.
President Trump recently expressed concern that a breakup could destroy Google, but did not elaborate on alternative penalties he might have in mind. “What we can do without destroying the relationship is make it more fair,” President Trump said last month. Former Republican lawmaker Matt Gaetz, who was nominated by President Trump to be the next U.S. attorney general, has previously advocated for breaking up Big Tech companies.
Gates, a Trump firebrand, faces a tough confirmation hearing.
This latest filing gives Kanter and his team one last chance to spell out the steps they believe will be needed to restore search competition. This came six weeks after the attorney general first floated the idea of dissolution with a preliminary outline of potential penalties.
But Canter’s proposal has already raised questions about whether regulators are seeking to take regulations beyond the issues raised in last year’s court case and, by extension, Mehta’s decision.
Banning default search agreements, which Google currently pays more than $26 billion a year to maintain, was one of the key practices at issue in Mehta’s ruling.
It’s less clear whether the justices will accept the Justice Department’s argument that Chrome should be spun out of Google and Android should be separated from the company’s other services.
Efforts to break up Google would lead to another major antitrust case in which a federal judge ruled that Microsoft illegally used its Windows operating system for PCs to stifle competition a quarter century ago. It is reminiscent of a similar punishment initially imposed on Microsoft in response to the attack.
But the appeals court overturned the order that would have broken up Microsoft, and many experts believe this precedent will make Mehta reluctant to pursue a similar path in the Google case.
