The U.S. Department of Justice is exploring various options, including the potential breakup of Alphabet’s Google, following a recent court ruling that found the tech giant guilty of illegally monopolizing the online search market, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.
Shares of Google’s parent company, Alphabet, dropped 1.4% in after-hours trading.
The ruling, delivered last week, determined that Google had violated antitrust laws by spending billions to establish and maintain an illegal monopoly as the world’s default search engine. This verdict is considered a significant victory for federal regulators challenging the dominance of Big Tech.
Among the DOJ’s options are requiring Google to share its data with competitors and implementing safeguards to prevent it from gaining an unfair edge in the AI sector, according to sources familiar with the matter.
One of the most discussed remedies by DOJ attorneys involves the divestment of Google’s Android operating system. Other potential actions include forcing the sale of AdWords, Google’s search ad platform, and possibly divesting its Chrome web browser.
Federal antitrust authorities have previously taken legal action against other tech giants, including Meta Platforms, Amazon.com, and Apple, accusing them of unlawfully maintaining monopolies. Microsoft had previously settled with the DOJ in 2004 over claims it had imposed its Internet Explorer browser on Windows users.
