The US Government has proposed forcing Google to sell off its Chrome web browser.
The move is part of measures to break up a monopoly a judge has said the company currently operates in online searches. According to court papers filed by the US Department of Justice (DoJ), the proposals call for the internet giant to sell its industry-leading web browser and impose restrictions designed to prevent its Android smartphone's software from favouring Google's own search engine.
The proposals also call for the company to be banned from signing multibillion-pound deals with smartphone makers such as Apple to make Google Search the default search engine on those companies' devices.. They are also designed to force Google to share data it collects from its search engine with its rivals in an effort to boost competition in the sector.
In its recommendations, the DoJ said: "The playing field is not level because of Google's conduct, and Google's quality reflects the ill-gotten gains of an advantage illegally acquired. The remedy must close this gap and deprive Google of these advantages." Google's president of global affairs and chief legal officer, Kent Walker, called the proposals "staggering" and "extreme", warning they would "break" many of Google's products and endanger the security and privacy of US users as a result.
"(The) DOJ chose to push a radical interventionist agenda that would harm Americans and America's global technology leadership," he said. "DOJ's wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the court's decision. It would break a range of Google products - even beyond Search - that people love and find helpful in their everyday lives."
The recommendations are in response to a landmark August ruling by US district judge Amit Mehta, who branded Google a monopolist. Court hearings on the proposed remedies are scheduled to begin in April, with a final decision on the issue expected by next summer. However, the case could be further prolonged should Judge Mehta side with the DoJ's recommendations, and Google would then almost certainly appeal.
It also remains unclear if attitudes inside the DoJ will change - and a less strident approach is sought - after President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January. He is widely expected to replace Jonathan Kanter, who was appointed by President Joe Biden to lead the department's antitrust division. Google is expected to lodge its own proposed remedies before the end of the year.