Alphabet Inc’s Google must sell its Chrome browser, share data and search results with rivals, and take other measures — including possibly selling Android — to end its monopoly on online search, prosecutors argued in a US court on Wednesday.
Such changes could result in Google being regulated for as many as 10 years via a committee appointed by the Washington federal court that ruled it held an illegal monopoly in search and related advertising in the US.
The measures presented by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) are part of a landmark case which has the potential to reshape how users find information. In the US, Google processes 90 percent of searches.
Photo: Josh Edelson / AFP
“Google’s unlawful behavior has deprived rivals not only of critical distribution channels but also distribution partners who could otherwise enable entry into these markets by competitors in new and innovative ways,” the DOJ and state antitrust enforcers said in a court filing on Wednesday.
Their proposals include ending exclusive agreements in which Google pays billions of dollars annually to Apple Inc and other device vendors to make its search engine the default on their tablets and smartphones.
The filing expands on an earlier outline on how the government wants to end Google’s monopoly in the US. Google called the proposals radical at the time, saying they would harm US consumers and businesses and shake US competitiveness in artificial intelligence.
US District Judge Amit Mehta has scheduled a trial on the proposals for April, though US president-elect Donald Trump and the DOJ’s next antitrust head could step in and change course in the case.
The proposals are wide-ranging, including barring Google from re-entering the browser market for five years and insisting Google sell its Android mobile operating system if other remedies fail to restore competition. The DOJ has also requested a prohibition on Google buying or investing in search rivals, query-based artificial intelligence products or advertising technology.
A five-person technical committee appointed by the judge would enforce compliance under prosecutors’ proposals. The committee, which Google would pay for, would have the power to demand documents, interview employees and delve into software code, the filing showed.
The measures together are meant to break “a perpetual feedback loop that further entrenches Google” through additional users, data and advertising dollars, prosecutors said.
Google would have a chance to present its own proposals next month.
Prosecutors crafted the proposals after speaking with companies that compete with Google, including search engine DuckDuckGo.
“We think this is a really big deal and will lower the barriers to competition,” DuckDuckGo’s head of public affairs Kamyl Bazbaz said.
DuckDuckGo has accused Google of trying to dodge European Union rules requiring data sharing. Google said it would not compromise user trust by giving competitors sensitive data.
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
Meta Platforms Inc offered US$100 million bonuses to OpenAI employees in an unsuccessful bid to poach the ChatGPT maker’s talent and strengthen its own generative artificial intelligence (AI) teams, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has said. Facebook’s parent company — a competitor of OpenAI — also offered “giant” annual salaries exceeding US$100 million to OpenAI staffers, Altman said in an interview on the Uncapped with Jack Altman podcast released on Tuesday. “It is crazy,” Sam Altman told his brother Jack in the interview. “I’m really happy that at least so far none of our best people have decided to take them
PLANS: MSI is also planning to upgrade its service center in the Netherlands Micro-Star International Co (MSI, 微星) yesterday said it plans to set up a server assembly line at its Poland service center this year at the earliest. The computer and peripherals manufacturer expects that the new server assembly line would shorten transportation times in shipments to European countries, a company spokesperson told the Taipei Times by telephone. MSI manufactures motherboards, graphics cards, notebook computers, servers, optical storage devices and communication devices. The company operates plants in Taiwan and China, and runs a global network of service centers. The company is also considering upgrading its service center in the Netherlands into a
RSS