https://www.theverge.com/2024/12/21/24326402/google-search-antitrust-remedies-proposal-browser-default-android

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Google's counteroffer to the government trying to break it up is
unbundling Android apps

Google's counteroffer to the government trying to break it up is
unbundling Android apps

/

Here's how Google would fix its monopoly on search.

By Richard Lawler, a senior editor following news across tech,
culture, policy, and entertainment. He joined The Verge in 2021 after
several years covering news at Engadget.

Dec 21, 2024, 5:05 AM UTC

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Photo illustration of Google logo in front of the US Court House
Illustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge

The Department of Justice's list of solutions for fixing Google's
illegal antitrust behavior and restoring competition in the search
engine market started with forcing the company to sell Chrome, and
late Friday night, Google responded with a list of its own (included
below).

Instead of breaking off Chrome, Android, or Google Play as the DOJ's
filing considers, Google's proposed fixes aim at the payments it
makes to companies like Apple and Mozilla for exclusive, prioritized
placement of its services, its licensing deals with companies that
make Android phones, and contracts with wireless carriers. They don't
address a DOJ suggestion about possibly forcing Google to share its
valuable search data with other companies to help their products
catch up.

Related

  * Breaking down the DOJ's plan to end Google's search monopoly
  * US v. Google: all the news from the search antitrust showdown

According to Google's lawyers, the ruling pointed to arrangements
with Apple and Mozilla for their browsers, the companies that make
Android phones, and wireless carriers. Google regulatory VP Lee-Anne
Mulholland writes on the company blog, "This was a decision about our
search distribution contracts, so our proposed remedies are directed
to that.

For three years, its proposal would block Google from signing deals
that link licenses for Chrome, Search, and its Android app store,
Google Play, with placement or preinstallation of its other apps,
including Chrome, Google Assistant, or the Gemini AI assistant.

It would also still allow Google to pay for default search placement
in browsers but allow for multiple deals across different platforms
or browsing modes and require the ability to revisit the deals at
least once a year.

While the company still plans to appeal Judge Amit Mehta's ruling
that said, "Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to
maintain its monopoly," first, it says it will submit a revised
proposal on March 7th, ahead of a two-week trial over the issue in
April.

Related

  * Google's empire is under siege

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More from this stream US v. Google: all the news from the search
antitrust showdown

  * 
    Breaking down the DOJ's plan to end Google's search monopoly

    Nov 27, 2024, 4:50 PM UTC
  * 
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    Nov 21, 2024, 9:42 AM UTC
  * 
    DOJ says Google must sell Chrome to crack open its search
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    Nov 21, 2024, 4:56 AM UTC
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    Google workers to DOJ: we need protections to make your breakup
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See all 75 stories
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