The US Department of Justice launches an all-out attack on Google. After a previous conviction, the government wants to force Google to sell Chrome.

Google was officially declared a “monopolist” by an American judge in August. After a year-long trial, the court ruled that Google had created an unlawful monopoly with its search engine and advertising model. The American government wants to strike while the iron is hot. A split of Google is a path that is being explicitly investigated.

How the government plans to approach this is starting to take shape. The Justice Department is said to have submitted a proposal to break up Google to a federal judge, writes Bloomberg. One of the measures proposed by the DOJ is that Google would be forced to sell the Chrome Internet browser.

Gate of the Empire

Chrome plays a central role in Google’s digital empire, the ministry believes. With a global market share of 66 percent, Chrome has little competition in the browser market. Google Search is the starting point of every browser session in Chrome, making the browser an important gateway to the search engine. Chrome users will therefore not quickly replace Google with a search engine from another provider.

Of course, owning the most popular browser also benefits Google’s advertising department. Through the browser, Google collects interesting data about internet users’ web activities, which it can pass on to advertisers. Chrome isn’t considered the most privacy-friendly browser on the market, and Google doesn’t plan on changing that anytime soon.

Finally, Chrome also plays a role in the AI ​​push that Google is implementing. Google is integrating its Gemini Assistant ever deeper into the browser to market it as a digital assistant that follows you everywhere on the Internet. So don’t think that Google just wants to sell Chrome.

Android and AI

The proposed measures are not limited to Chrome. The DOJ also wants Google to separate the Android operating system from its own services. Every Android phone comes with Google apps like Google Play, Gmail and of course Search and Chrome by default. The DOJ no longer wants Google to ship Android with its own services as an inseparable package on smartphones.

A final suggestion revolves around the AI ​​overviews that Google recently introduced to the search engine. These provide a brief summary of the most important search results. Although Google itself claims that it makes it easier for internet visitors to find good sources, website owners are less satisfied with it because it reduces the need to click through the webpage.

This way, advertising revenue stays with Google and flows less to websites. The DOJ wants to address this in two ways. Google should open both the underlying query data and the syndicated search results without restrictions.

Figs after Easter

Not all proposed measures will be implemented immediately. It is initially up to the responsible court to evaluate this and officially impose it on Google. After that, Google can still appeal, which it most likely will. In a response to Bloomberg, Google pushed back and accused the DOJ of “promoting a radical agenda that goes far beyond the legal issues in this case.”

A final judgment is therefore not expected before August 2025. The question then is how effective the measures taken are. As we noted in a previous analysis, the calf actually drowned a long time ago. Google’s monopoly is firmly entrenched. The separation of Chrome and Google Search will not suddenly lead to people switching to alternatives en masse.

The American government wants to signal to Google and the tech giants that they can no longer simply afford everything. In this respect, it could be unpleasant years for Google, because you can’t expect any friends in the new government either.