Trump DOJ Advances Google Chrome Divestiture Remedy

WASHINGTON- Center for Journalism & Liberty (CJL) at the Open Markets Institute Director Dr. Courtney Radsch shared the following statement in response to the revised proposed remedies that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has put forward to address Google’s monopoly over online search.  

“We are pleased to see the DOJ continue to uphold its request for a divestiture of Chrome, as well as divesting Android as a contingency measure. It’s clear that the DOJ sees structural separations have proven to be effective and are necessary to correct Google’s misconduct.  

“We are also relieved to see that Google’s potential tactics to leverage AI to monopolize search will still be examined in the remedies trial. Although the DOJ is no longer requesting Google sell its current investments in AI companies, the prior notification provision for future AI investments sends a clear signal that special vigilance — complementary to the scope of the Hart–Scott–Rodino Act — has become necessary in a technology sector that suffers from extreme concentration. 

“We are disappointed that the DOJ has not pushed for a more aggressive disgorgement of improperly obtained data, nor will it pursue an opt-in approach to AI training for publishers and individual creators. We continue to urge policy makers to more closely pursue competition reform in the search market by using the DOJ’s remedies, and our own recommendations as a guide.” 

CJL has closely followed both Google cases and trials and weighed in previously on the DOJ’s initially proposed remedies in the Google Search case here, writing that “structural separations are an effective and necessary measure to prevent” Google’s monopoly behavior going forward. You can find more of our reporting on both cases here and here.