The US Ministry of Justice demanded that Google have to sell the Chrome browser to oblige Google

On April 21, a new stage of antitrust case against Google began in the Washington federal court. The US Department of Justice introduced Judge Amit Mecht a list of measures aimed at eliminating the company's monopoly on the online market. Including the forced sale of the Chrome browser.

During the hearing, the representative of the Ministry of Justice David Dalvist accused Google of creating a “closed cycle”, in which the company pays billions of dollars for installing its search engine by default on devices, which increases the volume of requests, improves the quality of search and enhances market power. As the main means of eliminating this practice, the Ministry of Justice requires the forced sale of the Chrome browser, which, according to the agency, is the starting point for 35% of user search queries.

Additionally, the Ministry of Justice insists on the termination of exclusive agreements with manufacturers of devices, such as Apple and Samsung, by installing Google as a default search engine, as well as to provide competitors with access to the company's search data.

The representative of the Ministry of Justice David Dalquist said at the hearing:

“We are at the fracture point. The court has the opportunity to eliminate the monopoly that controlled the Internet for the whole generation, and restore competition for decades ahead. ”

Google, in turn, insists that it has achieved a dominant position thanks to honest competition. The company representative John Schmidtline called the Ministry of Justice suggestions “the list of competitors' desires” and warned that their implementation could damage innovation. According to him, Google is already faced with increased competition, including from companies operating in the field of artificial intelligence, such as Openai.

The hearings will last several weeks, during which the performances of key witnesses are expected, including the General Director of Google Sundar Pichai and the leaders of competing companies. The final decision of the Mechta Judge by Meetings on Google is expected by August or September 2025.

The Ministry of Justice filed a lawsuit against Google back in October 2020, at the end of the first term of Donald Trump. This case is considered the most significant antimonopoly process in the IT sector since Microsoft's proceedings in the 1990s. More than 30 General Prosecutors of the States, representing both the Republican and the Democratic Parties, supported the position of the government.

Last week, the Ministry of Justice has already achieved victory in a separate case against Google regarding the digital advertising market. Although this decision does not directly affect the current process, it strengthened the position of the department, confirming the accusations of suppressing competition.