The DOJ lawyers suggest a possible breakup of Google.

With the recent determination by Judge Amit Mehta that Google operates as a monopolist, attorneys from the Department of Justice have begun to propose measures to address the company's illegal behavior and restore competition in the search engine market. In a new 32-page document, it is mentioned that they are considering both "behavioral and structural" solutions.

These solutions range from implementing a consent decree to oversee the company's actions, to the potential obligation to sell parts of its business, such as Chrome, Android, or Google Play. The plaintiffs are also evaluating measures that would prevent Google from leveraging its products, such as Chrome, Play, and Android, to favor its own search engine and associated products, including emerging features like artificial intelligence, to the detriment of competitors and new entrants.

A highlighted issue in the document is Google's control over the distribution of search services, as well as the payments the company makes to be the default option on platforms like Apple's iPhone. DOJ attorneys point out that "rivals cannot compete for these distribution channels because monopoly-funded payments disincentivize partners from redirecting queries to their competitors."

Among the possible solutions being considered are proposals aimed at influencing user behavior, such as requiring Google to support educational awareness campaigns to help users choose the search engine that best fits their needs.

In response to these proposals, Google argued on its blog that the suggested framework "goes far beyond the legal scope of the Court's decision on search distribution agreements" and warned that "dividing Chrome or Android would break them." The company insists that billions of people access the internet because Chrome and Android are free products, and that "few companies would have the capacity or incentive to maintain them as open-source projects or to invest in them at the same level that we do."