Justice Department ponders Google breakup in court filing

The U.S. Department of Justice proposed Tuesday that a federal court order Google to share the secret recipe for its dominant search engine to its rivals. Prosecutors also suggested that U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta prevent Google from creating agreements with computer and phone manufacturers to preinstall Google’s search engines on their devices.

The DOJ sued Google in 2020 alleging that it used illegal methods to create and maintain a monopoly in the search engine marketplace. Judge Mehta ruled earlier this year in the DOJ’s favor, finding that Google did use illegal methods to achieve and maintain market dominance. Court proceedings now center on proposals for how to remedy Google’s monopoly.

What other options are the DOJ suggesting as remedies? Government attorneys on Tuesday suggested that the court force Google to allow third-party websites to choose whether Google uses their web pages to train its artificial intelligence systems. So far, third-party websites have had little choice about whether Google trained its artificial intelligence systems with their web pages because Google had a monopoly over the search engine market, the DOJ argued. The DOJ also told the court it was considering proposals for dismantling Google’s digital advertising monopoly.

How has Google responded? Google’s Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland on Tuesday expressed concern that the DOJ’s proposals address more than just the specific legal questions at issue in the case. Mulholland also argued the proposals could create serious issues for consumers. Forcing Google to share the secret recipe for its search engine could threaten users’ privacy, Mulholland explained.

She added that holding back Google’s AI tools could threaten American innovation. Xhanging Google’s advertising market infrastructure would make advertisements less useful for the average person, she argued. Finally, an overbroad system of regulations could tie Google’s hands in providing convenient service to people who just want to look up helpful information online, she said.

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Sift about how a judge ordered the Google Play app store to allow more competition.