The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome • Hacker News Board

Re: The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome

#111

Post by andrewxdiamond » Sat, Mar 08, 2025, 7:56 PM UTC

ronnier wrote: post #103

It’s a big world. Does breaking up google give the Asian giants an advantage? Wonder if China breaks up their large tech companies?

Another perspective is Google is stifling American innovation by its megalithic presence in markets. Suppressing local growth in exchange for short term profitability.

Separately, why is having tech giants a pure advantage? These companies got big by innovating, but the innovation slows down when they are big. Sounds to me that we should be regularly clearing old growth to let new ideas break through

Re: The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome

#112

Post by rollcat » Sat, Mar 08, 2025, 7:57 PM UTC

re-thc wrote: post #12

Can Google just "donate" Chrome to a foundation like a lot of big companies do to deal with this? Maybe we'll soon have Apache Chrome!

Like what Mozilla was supposed to be doing all along?

Re: The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome

#113

Post by pessimizer » Sat, Mar 08, 2025, 7:59 PM UTC

lewdwig wrote: post #91

All that rather pathetic grovelling and kowtowing to Trump, for naught.

The suit started under the last Trump administration.

Re: The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome

#114

Post by rad_gruchalski » Sat, Mar 08, 2025, 8:00 PM UTC

nradov wrote: post #97

rad_gruchalski wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Either you need to service your computer or configure your Firefox. I went back to Firefox about 5 years ago and not even once missed Chrome since.

Why should the user need to do that? The browser should automatically configure itself for optimal performance on any reasonable hardware.

Because none of what they talk about is a problem. So the problem may lay on their side. Or they roll on a half-a-decade-old sentiment.

Re: The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome

#115

Post by batperson » Sat, Mar 08, 2025, 8:01 PM UTC

I can't find information on what would happen to Chromium, would google need to hand it over too? That's probably more important than the fate of Chrome.

Re: The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome

#116

Post by nfw2 » Sat, Mar 08, 2025, 8:03 PM UTC

calcifer wrote: post #82

ttoinou wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can’t any motivated group of developers fork chromium and push their own agenda ?

That's not relevant. Chrome has the most market share, so its decisions become de facto standards. What happens in some fork by a 2 men crew doesn't matter.

The cancellation of the web integrity api is evidence against this claim.

Re: The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome

#117

Post by latency-guy2 » Sat, Mar 08, 2025, 8:04 PM UTC

andrewxdiamond wrote: post #111

ronnier wrote: post #103

It’s a big world. Does breaking up google give the Asian giants an advantage? Wonder if China breaks up their large tech companies?

Another perspective is Google is stifling American innovation by its megalithic presence in markets. Suppressing local growth in exchange for short term profitability. Separately, why is having tech giants a pure advantage? These companies got big by innovating, but the innovation slows down when they are big. Sounds to me that we should be regularly clearing old growth to let new ideas break through

[flagged]

Re: The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome

#118

Post by manquer » Sat, Mar 08, 2025, 8:05 PM UTC

qwerty456127 wrote: post #84

> The Justice Department also kept a Biden-era proposal that seeks to ban Google from paying companies like Apple, other smartphone manufacturers and Mozilla to make its search engine the default on their phones and browsers. RIP Firefox?

It will hurt but it won’t be their death.

They have been saving up a bit last year if you see the financial reports their reserves are just above $1B now and there are others who paid in the past (like Yahoo did till 2017) who will pay Firefox a decent amount if not like Google does .

My guess it is likely be Bing or probably a new generation AI company like OpenAI who will replace Google and perhaps even pay similar or close to what Google pays. The traffic is worth a lot. Bing attested to click flow as the reason they cannot make a better product in their testimony in this trial.

Also Google will either be allowed to continue the contract till its current end (I believe 1-2 more years ) or will pay fully and release Mozilla from their obligations (Mozilla is not party to the case so early termination without compensation would be penalty on them for no reason ).

Mozilla will need to make some significant cuts and layoffs no doubt will be hard on the team, but the product will survive.

Re: The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome

#119

Post by wmf » Sat, Mar 08, 2025, 8:05 PM UTC

batperson wrote: post #115

I can't find information on what would happen to Chromium, would google need to hand it over too? That's probably more important than the fate of Chrome.

Realistically Chromium is downstream of Chrome and it goes where Chrome goes. Chromebooks are somewhat more interesting.

Re: The DOJ still wants Google to sell off Chrome

#120

Post by pessimizer » Sat, Mar 08, 2025, 8:06 PM UTC

DragonStrength wrote: post #63

dlcarrier wrote: post #50

Last time the DOJ declared a web browser monopoly, they lost the case on appeal, then the web browser does on its own. The problem isn't within Google. They aren't doing anything substantial to lock users into Chrome. The problem is unforced errors on the part of both Apple and Mozilla creating awful web browsers that aren't worth using.

Well, last time, the presidential election changed executive support as well. That would make this significant since it’s a new Justice Dept.

This suit began under the last Trump administration. If there was a Google-friendly administration, it was Obama's.

What's disappointing to Google is that all of their kowtowing to the Biden administration's "content shaping" ended up worth nothing in the end. Harris would have rewarded them for that help, but Trump of course hates them for it because it was largely directed at him.