In addition to Chrome, the agency and states expressed a preference for Google to divest its Android smartphone operating system. However, anticipating opposition from Google and others, they have proposed a series of restrictions on the business unit instead.
Key takeaways:
- The Justice Department and a group of states have proposed major changes to Google, including a forced sale of the company’s Chrome web browser.
- This proposal comes after a landmark ruling that Google illegally monopolized online search.
- Antitrust enforcers have said Google must divest Chrome, as the browser has been found to fortify the company's dominance.
- The agency and states would also prefer a divestiture of the Android smartphone operating system, but they have proposed a series of limits on the business unit instead, anticipating opposition from Google and others.