On Monday, insiders revealed that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) plans to ask a judge to force Alphabet’s Google to divest from its Chrome internet browser.
The DOJ is set to tap federal judge Amit Mehta to handle the most aggressive attempt by the Biden administration to dissolve Big Tech monopolies. Judge Mehta ruled in August that Google illegally monopolized the search market using schemes that violated anti-trust laws.
Justice Department representatives argued that no company should control the world’s top search engine and most popular browser. Chrome, which owns about two-thirds of the global browser market, allows Google to collect unrivaled amounts of data.
The tech giant then uses the data to dictate what ads see when browsing using its search engine. Hence, the DOJ claims this grants the company an unfair advantage that other enterprises cannot compete with.
Google Regulatory Affairs Vice President Lee-Anne Mulholland countered that the proposal is an extreme example of government overreach. She added that the radical agenda surrounding the notion goes beyond the legal issues relevant to Chrome.
Analysts claim that breaking up the search engine colossus may be one of President Joe Biden’s final objectives as his administration winds down. Hence, they expect Google to employ delaying tactics to push the judgment far into President-elect Donald Trump’s second term.
Chrome and Google Face Mixed Signals from Trump
In late October, Trump expressed skepticism about separating Google and Chrome, saying such a move could ruin the company. This contrasted the Republican firebrand’s September pledge to prosecute the search engine giant over its perceived bias against him.
Chrome’s dominating market share makes it an essential revenue driver for Alphabet. Moreover, executing a Google search while logged into the browser allows the user to receive superior targeted ads.
Mehta scheduled a trial to discuss potential remedies for April next year and estimates to deliver his ruling by August. However, legal experts cautioned that these plans could be heavily impacted once Trump makes his stance clear after taking office.
