Google opposes the Justice Department’s “interventionist” remedies in the antitrust case

Google offered its own proposal in a recent antitrust case that prompted the US Department of Justice to debate it Google should sell its Chrome browser.

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled in August Google acted illegally To maintain the online search monopoly, with the Justice Department then proposing a number of remedies, including selling the Chrome browser, selling its Android operating system, and prohibiting it from entering into exclusionary search agreements with browser and phone companies.

Google Make an alternative suggestion Friday, with the company’s vice president of regulatory affairs Lee Ann Mulholland Claim in a blog post The Justice Department’s proposal reflects an “interventionist agenda” that “goes far beyond the true intent of the court’s decision.”

Mulholland added, “The bigger problem is that the DOJ’s proposal would harm American consumers and undermine America’s leadership in global technology at a critical juncture — such as requiring us to share people’s private search queries with foreign and domestic competitors, and restricting our ability to innovate and improve our products.”

As an alternative, Google proposes allowing it to strike search deals with companies like Apple and Mozilla, but it should have the option to set different defaults on different platforms (e.g., iPhone vs. iPad) and in different browsing modes.

The company also suggests that Android device manufacturers have more flexibility in preloading multiple search engines, as well as when preloading Google apps without Google Search or Chrome.

Judge Mehta is expected to rule on remedies next year, with a hearing scheduled for April. Google not only plans to negotiate treatments, but also plans to appeal Mehta’s August ruling against the company, Mulholland said. But, she wrote, “Before we file our appeal, the legal process requires that the parties determine what solutions best respond to the court’s decision.”