DoJ Considers Breaking Up Google In Major Shakeup To Its Search Dominance
The initial ruling against Google came back in August of this year. US District Judge Amit Mehta remarked that “Google was a monopolist,” and found the company had “violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act.” Shortly after the initial ruling, rumors of Google’s possible forced breakup began swirling. That possibility grew in likelihood this week, as the DoJ filed court papers saying it is considering enforcing “structural remedies” that would help prevent the tech giant from using some of its products such as Chrome and Android as an advantage over its rivals.
The judgment remarked in part: “Plaintiffs are considering behavioral and structural remedies that would prevent Google from using products such as Chrome, Play, and Android to advantage Google search and Google search-related products and features – including emerging search access points and features, such as artificial intelligence –over rivals or new entrants.”
Google responded quickly to the news, stating it would be challenging any case submitted by the DoJ, and that the proposals presented were an “overreach” by the government and would harm consumers.
In a blog post, Google’s vice president of global affairs, Lee-Anne Mulholland remarked, “We are concerned the DOJ is already signaling requests that go far beyond the specific legal issues in this case.” Regarding breaking Android and the Google Play Store from the main company, she argued, “Make no mistake: Breaking them off would change their business models, raise the cost of devices, and undermine Android and Google Play in their robust competition with Apple’s iPhone and App Store.”
During the trial, witnesses testified Google had billions of dollars per year to ensure it was the default search engine on smartphones, such as the iPhone, and on web browsers like Mozilla Firefox. One example given was in 2021, Google spent $26.3 billion on deals to ensure it was the default search engine. Given the fact Google currently controls around 90% of the US search engine market, while competitors Bing and Yahoo only control about 3%, makes it tough for Google to argue against some sort of breakup.
The filing by the DoJ also remarked, “Fully remedying these harms requires not only ending Google’s control of distribution today, but also ensuring Google cannot control the distribution tomorrow.”
It is important to note, any suggested remedy by the DoJ must be approved by the ruling judge.
