Google Responds to DoJ Break-Up Threat

After the US Department of Justice (DoJ) pushed for potential actions against Alphabet, the company responded. Its Google business said that proposals, which include a potential splitting of the tech giant, could create security risks, hold back AI innovation, and break the Android OS.

The company detailed its grievances in response to the filing of a US DoJ document outlining remedies the authority is considering pushing for following the result of a court decision against the Alphabet-owned business in August. Among the measures being mulled by the DoJ are behavioral and structural remedies to prevent Google from using products such as Chrome, Play, and Android to advantage of Google Search and related products and features.

The measures outlined are only under consideration by the DoJ and will be set out in a court hearing, where Google will also put its arguments forward. They relate to a case where the company was found to have broken antitrust law by creating a monopoly related to its search service. In a statement published in the wake of the DoJ filing, Google VP of Regulatory Affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland claimed the authority was already signaling requests that go far beyond the specific legal issues raised in this case.

“This case is about a set of search distribution contracts. Rather than focus on that, the government seems to be pursuing a sweeping agenda that will impact numerous industries and products, with significant unintended consequences for consumers, businesses, and American competitiveness.”

Discussing any forced spin-off of Android or Chrome, she asserted such splits would break them along with anything relying on the products. “Android is a secure, innovative, and free open-source operating system that has enabled vast choice in the smartphone market, helping to keep the cost of phones low for billions of people,” she added. Mulholland said few companies would have the ability or incentive to keep Google’s products open source or to invest in them at the same level.

“Make no mistake; breaking them off would change their business models, raise the cost of devices, and undermine Android and Google Play in their robust competition with Apple’s iPhone and App Store,” she added. The Google VP also warned of privacy and security risks if Google is forced to share search data with third parties and that US innovation could be held back during a critical moment in the global development of AI, a sector where competition is currently fierce.