Google's troubles: Tech giant must sell Chrome to end monopoly in search market, says US justice dept

The U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) has proposed an aggressive overhaul of Google's operations, aiming to end its monopoly on internet search market. This sweeping plan, filed in the US federal court, includes a forced sale of Google's popular Chrome browser and a five-year ban on the company from re-entering the browser space. Chrome could be worth up to $20 billion, as per reports. Other proposals call for an end to Google’s payments to third parties, such as Apple, to make its search engine the default on their devices. If these measures fail to restore competition, the DoJ suggests that Google might also have to divest its Android mobile operating system.

These proposals follow a court ruling in August, when a US federal judge found that Alphabet-owned Google had maintained an illegal monopoly over online search services.

The DoJ's filing also demands that Google allow publishers and content creators to block their data from being used to train the company’s artificial intelligence models. Additionally, the department is seeking to make Google’s search index—essentially, its comprehensive database of indexed web pages—available to competitors, as well as its search results.

The case will be decided by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta, who will hear arguments in April 2025. Google, for its part, has already signaled its intention to propose its own remedies, though it has vigorously opposed the DoJ’s plan, calling it “radical” and potentially damaging to consumers and businesses. Kent Walker, Google’s president of global affairs, warned that the proposals could undermine the company’s products, jeopardizing both user privacy and security.

The DoJ’s filing also seeks to block Google from acquiring or investing in any competing search engines, AI technologies, or advertising platforms.

According to the department, Google’s practices have stifled competition by limiting access to critical distribution channels. The U.S. tech giant currently controls around 90% of the global search market and over half of the browser market in the U.S., with Chrome playing a pivotal role in its dominance.