US regulators seek to break up Google, forcing Chrome sale

WASHINGTON

U.S. regulators want a federal judge to break up Google to prevent the company from continuing to squash competition through its dominant search engine after a court found it had maintained an abusive monopoly over the past decade.

The proposed breakup floated in a 23-page document filed late on Nov. 20 by the U.S. Justice Department calls for Google to sell its industry-leading Chrome web browser and impose restrictions designed to prevent its Android smartphone software from favoring its search engine.

The recommended penalties underscore how severely regulators operating under President Joe Biden believe Google should be punished following an August ruling by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta that branded Google as a monopolist.

The Justice Department decision-makers who will inherit the case after President-elect Donald Trump takes office next year might not be as strident.

The Washington, D.C. court hearings on Google's punishment are scheduled to begin in April.

If Mehta embraces the Justice Department's recommendations, Google will almost certainly appeal the punishments, prolonging a legal tussle that has dragged on for more than four years.

Besides seeking a Chrome spinoff and corralling of the Android software, the Justice Department wants the judge to ban Google from forging multibillion-dollar deals to lock in its dominant search engine as the default option on Apple’s iPhone and other devices.

Regulators also want Google to share data it collects from people’s queries with its rivals, giving them a better chance at competing with the tech giant.

The measures, if they are ordered, threaten to upend a business expected to generate more than $300 billion in revenue this year.