The US Justice Department said on Tuesday it will require Google to make deep changes to how it operates and even consider breaking up after it was found to be running an illegal monopoly.
Determining how to deal with Google’s mistakes is the next stage in a landmark antitrust trial that saw the company in August ruled a monopoly by US District Court Judge Amit Mehta.
An order to break up Google or require deep changes in the way it operates marks a profound shift from US government competition enforcers who have largely left the tech giants alone since failing to break up Microsoft two decades ago.
Google rejected the idea as “radical”.
The government told the judge in a court filing that it was considering options that included “structural” changes that could lead it to seek divestment of its Android smartphone operating system or Chrome browser.
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The Justice Department also said it could seek a ban on Google’s default agreements with third parties that see it pay tens of billions of dollars each year to Apple.
Requiring Google to release its search data to competitors was also on the table, he said.
That case, which centers on Google’s dominance of search engines, is part of a broader legal assault on the company’s alleged violations of antitrust agreements in the United States.
Google is facing additional challenges from the Department of Justice over its advertising technology and recently lost a panel trial by Fortnite company Epic Games over its Google Play store practices.
The DOJ’s remedial proposals are part of a “high-level framework” that describes how it envisions implementing the court’s ruling.
A more detailed request will be made in November, followed by arguments from both sides at a special hearing scheduled for April.
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90 percent of online search in the US
Google, in a blog post, criticized the government’s proposed remedies as “radical” and expressed concern that the Justice Department’s requests “go far beyond the specific legal issues in this case.”
Regardless of Judge Mehta’s final ruling, Google is expected to appeal, potentially dragging out the process for years and possibly all the way to the US Supreme Court.
The trial, which ended last year, examined Google’s confidential deals with smartphone makers, including Apple.
These deals include significant payments to secure Google’s search engine as the default choice on browsers, iPhones and other devices.
The judge ruled that this deal gave Google unparalleled access to user data, enabling it to develop its search engine into a globally dominant platform.
From that position, Google expanded its technology empire to include the Chrome browser, Maps, and the Android smartphone operating system.
According to the ruling, Google controlled 90 percent of the US online search market in 2020, with an even higher share of 95 percent on mobile devices.
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The filing came just a day after a US court on Monday ordered Google to open up its Android smartphone operating system to competing app stores, a result of the company’s defeat in the Epic Games case.
Google is appealing the order, which could reshape the mobile app landscape for years to come.
Source: AFP