CITIZENS NEWS

Justice Department urges court to order sale of Google's Chrome web browser

By ramontomeydw // 2025-04-25

• The Department of Justice (DOJ) is pushing a federal judge to order Google to sell its Chrome browser, aiming to dismantle its monopoly in online search after a 2023 court ruling found its dominance illegal.
• The antitrust case, filed in 2020 and supported by 49 states, accuses Google of stifling competition through exclusive deals, like paying Apple billions to remain Safari's default search engine.
• DOJ officials likened Google's monopoly to past giants like Standard Oil and AT&T, arguing that structural changes (e.g., divesting Chrome or Android) are necessary to restore competition.
• The company calls the DOJ's demands "a wish list from competitors," claiming it earned its market position fairly and warning that forced divestments would disrupt core services.
• The trial coincides with other antitrust actions against Meta and a recent ruling against Google's ad-tech monopoly, signaling a pivotal moment in regulating Big Tech's dominance and future influence (e.g., in AI).

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has escalated its antitrust battle against Google, urging a federal judge to dismantle the tech giant's grip on the digital landscape by forcing a sale of its Chrome browser. The move comes after a federal court last year ruled that Google illegally maintained a monopoly in online search through exclusive deals. These deals stifled competition, essentially harming consumers and advertisers. The push for drastic remedies signals a pivotal moment in the decades-long scrutiny of Big Tech's dominance. District Judge Amit Mehta of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, who presided over last year's liability trial, must now decide whether to order structural changes – such as divesting Chrome – or impose restrictions to level the playing field. The case first filed under the first Trump administration in 2020 has drawn bipartisan support – with 49 states, two territories and Washington, D.C. backing the DOJ's fight. "As a monopolist, Google uses its market power against the American people," Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche argued in court Monday. He cited the tech giant's political bias and its ironclad control over search, fortified by billion-dollar deals like its $20 billion annual payment to Apple to keep Google as Safari's default search engine. Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater meanwhile framed the case as part of a historic legacy, comparing the Mountain View, California-based company's dominance to past monopolies like Standard Oil and AT&T. "Each generation has called for the DOJ to challenge a behemoth that crushed competition," she said.

The trial that could reshape the internet

Google has fiercely contested the claims, calling the DOJ's proposals "a wish list from competitors" rather than meaningful antitrust remedies. Lead attorney John Schmidtlein defended the company's market position as something it won "fair and square." He ultimately warned that forcing Chrome's divestment would disrupt infrastructure deeply tied to Google's services. The DOJ, however, insists structural changes are essential. In addition to a potential Chrome spinoff, the government has demanded an end to Google's exclusionary contracts and greater transparency in search and ad data sharing with rivals. According to DOJ attorney David Dahlquist, this approach would "reinforce each other to encourage competition." Should these measures fail, the DOJ has a contingency: Forcing a separation from Google's Android operating system. The case arrives as Google reels from another antitrust blow – with a federal judge ruling that it illegally monopolized digital ad tech. "If Google's conduct is not remedied, it will control much of the internet for the next decade and not just in search, but in new technologies like artificial intelligence," Slater warned. (Related: Google's ad tech monopoly ruled ILLEGAL in historic ruling.) With Mark Zuckerberg's Meta Platforms also facing a landmark Federal Trade Commission trial over its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp, the legal assaults mark a turning point in Washington's campaign to rein in tech giants. For years, critics have accused Google of leveraging its dominance to inflate ad prices, suppress publisher revenues and limit consumer choice. The DOJ's remedies trial could reshape the digital economy either by fragmenting Google's empire, or setting new guardrails for competition. Watch this CNBC report about the Justice Department pushing for Google's divestment of the Chrome web browser. This video is from the TrendingNews channel on Brighteon.com.

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