According to a report by Bloomberg, the US government wants to force Google to sell Chrome. We welcome the US Department of Justice’s proposals to limit Google’s monopoly power.
In August, a US court found that Google has an illegal monopoly in online search. The US Department of Justice is now demanding that the court order the spin-off of Chrome. In addition, the Android operating system should no longer be linked to other Google services such as the search engine. Google is to license its search data and give websites more options to ensure that page content is not used in Google’s AI products. According to Bloomberg, the sale of Chrome could be abandoned later if the other measures already ensure more competition.
Rebalance Now welcomes the US Department of Justice’s proposals. Here is our assessment:
In order to limit Google’s power, structural measures such as the spin-off of Chrome are the right answer. It is good that the US Department of Justice is proposing a comprehensive package of measures and is also keeping an eye on current AI developments. The combination of measures goes to the heart of Google’s monopoly strategy and can create more scope for alternative online services. Google is trying to control central access points to the internet, such as browsers and smartphones, so that Google searches are preset there. This secures the search monopoly and allows Google to charge excessive advertising prices. Google can thus generate high monopoly profits with which it can further expand its own power. The combination of measures seems sensible and appropriate in order to break this monopolization cycle or at least significantly weaken it.
This requires further steps against Google’s dominance in the placement of online advertising, the so-called adtech sector. To this end, EU abuse proceedings are about to be concluded. The EU Commission should order the spin-off of parts of the advertising business. It had already threatened to do so in June 2023 and should stick to it.
Further information
Why Google should become break up now. The guest article for netzpolitik.org from September 2024 takes a closer look at Google’s monopoly strategy.
