Chrome could be on the chopping block, as DOJ targets Google’s monopoly

Google’s been living with the threat of the government stepping in and seriously upending its way of doing business for decades now. But this past summer, the company found itself facing probably the most tangible incarnation of that threat to date, as Judge Amit P. Mehta ruled that Google’s actions in its search and browser business amounted to monopolistic behavior. Ever since, we’ve been waiting to learn what the fallout from this decision would be. This week, a new report attempts to offer some insight into what’s going to happen next — and it sounds like very bad news for Google.

The US Justice Department wants Google to divest itself of its Chrome browser business, according to sources speaking with Bloomberg. While we don’t yet know the full scope of what the DOJ may request, it reportedly could also involve orders related to AI and Android, as well as restrictions on how the company is able to license its data.

Once presented with the DOJ’s plan, which could happen as soon as this Wednesday, Judge Mehta would still have to rule on what measures he actually finds appropriate to be enforced by the courts.

In a statement to Bloomberg, Google’s VP of regulatory affairs characterizes the Justice Department’s agenda as “radical” and suggests its proposed solution “goes far beyond the legal issues in this case.”

Alphabet stock sharply dipped immediately following the publication of this news earlier this afternoon, but has already leveled off to higher than it was this morning. Of course, should this DOJ proposal actually occur as we’re hearing, and if the courts largely follow the recommendations we’re now expecting, that’s a situation that could change rapidly.

Chrome, along with Search, is one of those core Google products that really manages to serve as the sort of glue uniting many of the company’s efforts, such that it’s quite difficult to imagine what Google looks like without it. But despite all the toothless threats we’ve heard over the years about breaking Google up, it would be a mistake to dismiss this latest attempt as an impossibility.