Facing antitrust allegations from the US Department of Justice (DOJ), Google attracted attention with the solution proposal it submitted to the court. In August, Washington DC District Court Judge Amit Mehta ruled that the company violated Section 2 of the Sherman Act, a key section of US antitrust laws. This decision confirmed that Google was abusing its dominance in the market through its search engine and Chrome browser. Although Google criticized the court decision, it promises to give more flexibility to browser manufacturers and device developers with its proposal.
Details of the proposal were revealed in a blog post by Lee-Anne Mulholland, Google’s vice president of regulatory affairs. According to this proposal, browser companies would be able to determine different default search engines across platforms and make changes once every year. For example, a browser may default to one search engine on iPhone devices and another on iPad devices. At the same time, device manufacturers will have the freedom to independently pre-install multiple search engines and Google apps.
New steps against the court’s decision
However, the DOJ’s proposals raise even more radical solutions. The Ministry believes that a number of measures are necessary, including requiring Google to share its search engine indexes and algorithms with rival companies. In addition, forcing the company to sell its Chrome browser and preventing Google search from being the default in the Android operating system are also among the options being considered. DOJ has a strong belief that these steps will increase competition.
Google states that it finds the proposed sanctions excessive. Mulholland argued that the DOJ’s recommendations misinterpreted the court’s decision, stating that these sanctions could both disrupt the user experience and have negative effects throughout the industry. The company is expected to submit a new proposal to the court in March. This process appears to be a major turning point in Google’s approach to antitrust claims.
The impact of the flexibility to be granted to internet browser and device manufacturers on the market will be seen over time. How will the power of device manufacturers and browsers to preload or default to different search engines affect user preferences? Experts predict that these changes could significantly alter market balances. On the other hand, if the DOJ’s recommendations are adopted, they could have lasting effects on Google’s business model.
Google’s proposed changes show that the company is ready to make concessions in the antitrust case. But the DOJ’s oppressive demands indicate that the case could transform not only Google but also the overall structure of the technology industry. This process can reshape not only a company’s future but also how competition is defined.