Can you imagine Google without Chrome… The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is pushing Google to break up, sell its Chrome web browsing business and separate it from its Search service.

Bloomberg says so in an article that is spreading around the world, considering its relevance, because if it eventually materializes, it could completely change the current technological environment and it would open the door to business for other types of monopolies that abound in the industry. What will happen to Microsoft and Windows? And Apple with iOS and the App Store? And the same Google with Android and the Play Store? And retail giants like Amazon?

Google without Chrome?

The idea proposed by the Department of Justice would come in response to a court decision last summer in which Google was convicted of monopoly. take advantage of your dominant position in Internet searches drop out of the competition. The Department of Justice claims that Chrome plays a significant role in increasing the number of users of Google Search by making it the default search engine, which would effectively block competition.

This is not the first time Google has faced charges and convictions for violating antitrust laws. For years, critics have pointed to how Google (as well as others like Microsoft) bundles its services, such as Android and the Play Store, to ensure its products remain dominant. Current strategy of the Ministry of Justice of demand sales (such as the Chrome or Android division) shows a firmer stance compared to previous cases where only fines or behavior changes were applied.

Google argues that such a split would harm consumers by disrupting integration between its services, compromising security features and slowing innovation. This would also reduce the company’s revenue and profits by a good amount. And it would also affect Chrome OS and other company software.

There is no doubt that Google without Chrome can mean big change both for the world of technology and for the way we experience the internet. Web browsers are one of the most used and important types of software in the world. They’re not just for browsing, they’re what drive the search market and with it the huge advertising pie on the internet as well as e-commerce purchases. Plus, Google isn’t just anyone on the web. Chrome largely dominates the global market share (70%) and is also key in browser development thanks to its open source Chromium project.

The case has just begun, it is being prosecuted, and there is still a long way to go before Google becomes Chrome-free, but the pressure from the Department of Justice is there. This move can have a ripple effect on other companies that operate in a similar way and have services that monopolize their specific sector. What are we going to talk about Microsoft’s strategy with Windows or Apple with its mobile app store. Not to mention Google itself with Android. There are many and very similar cases.

As for forcing the company to break up, it wouldn’t be the first or the last time. Sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn’t. Recall that at the end of the last century, the Department of Justice tried to force Microsoft to separate Windows from the rest of its software offering in response to what was clearly an abuse of the operating system’s monopoly. Much earlier, in 1982, a great example of distributed technology was the case spin-off of AT&T Corp (a real super monopoly) which ended up splitting into seven new independent companies that became known as Baby Bells.