Why the US wants to force Google to sell Chrome
Google is in trouble,As my colleague Dan Milmo reported, the US Department of Justice “has proposed a far-reaching overhaul of Google’s structure and business practices, including the sale of its Chrome browser, in a bid to end its monopoly on internet search”,The move follows a major court ruling last August in which a federal judge determined that Google had violated antitrust laws and held an illegal monopoly over search services,The justice department’s suggestion is blunt: “Google must divest Chrome,” As for Android, the DoJ proposes two potential remedies: divest or submit to government oversight.
Both demands present seismic challenges to Google’s multiform, money-printing advertising business and would be a worst-case scenario for the company.In an aggressively defensive blog post, Google’s chief legal officer, Kent Walker, called the justice department’s proposals “staggering”, “extreme”, and “unprecedented government overreach”.Walker can’t have an easy job right now.The company plans to file its own proposals next month and appeal its original loss in court.Still, Walker’s tone was, at times, almost comically histrionic: “As just one example, DoJ’s proposal would literally require us to install not one but two separate choice screens before you could access Google search on a Pixel phone you bought.
” Not one, but two separate choice screens??!!The justice department’s says its goal is to increase competition,Its attorneys wrote in a court filing: “A remedy for Google’s unlawful monopolization must simultaneously (1) unfetter these markets from Google’s exclusionary conduct; (2) pry them open to competition; (3) deny Google the fruits of its statutory violations; and (4) prevent Google from monopolizing these and related markets in the future,”Google search is the cornerstone of the company’s lucrative ad business; Chrome is the second stone,It is the most popular browser in the world, boasting a market share of almost two-thirds of people using the internet,It is an absolute vacuum of browsing data and a key gateway to Google search and therefore ads shown via Google search.
Its ads business precedes everything else the company does in profit and importance, ergo Chrome is the second-most vital part of Google,The ads business suffers a dire blow without Chrome, and Google shrinks,That is the justice department’s goal,Google argues that divestiture would hurt US leadership in the tech industry; the justice department argues Google’s monopolistic conduct hurts US leadership in the tech industry,Google may also be forced to sell off Android, the most popular smartphone operating system.
Android is likewise a conduit for data used to sell ads.The sale of Android would also be an enormous hit to Google’s business.The more interesting outcome in regard to Android would be the submission of the operating system to government oversight.What design decisions would a government committee make? It’d be fascinating to see the aesthetic qualities of a government-administered smartphone operating system.Two separate choice screens? Sweet suffering Jesus!Without Chrome, Google would also lose the extremely valuable youth market.
The tech giant’s Chromebooks are a low-cost item for schools that distribute laptops to students.Those laptops use Chrome OS, an operating system designed for web browsing and web-based tasks.Children introduced to one company’s products become accustomed to using them, and may seek out that company’s products as an adult.Apple has stated that training school-age users on its products can nurture a major pipeline of new customers.Defaults are powerful, whether they appear as devices in schools or the search engine that appears in your browser’s address bar.
Even if Google succeeds in appealing the forced divestment of Chrome, it seems likely that the company will be compelled to end its at-least-$20bn deal with Apple to maintain its search engine as the default in the Safari browser,Google’s only concession, it seems from Walker’s blog post, is to say it would be fine with changes, perhaps even complete cancellations, to those agreements,Walker writes that the justice department could have proposed remedies related to “search distribution agreements” – Google’s contracts with Firefox and the like,If even Google’s chief legal officer is saying that he would have preferred changes to those agreements, it is reasonable to infer that he would have accepted those changes,The browser agreements are not long for this world.
You, the product’s user, may find yourself tasked with choosing a default search engine for your iPhone’s browser.I would recommend trying something other than Google, perhaps the privacy-focused DuckDuckGo, just for fun.You can always switch back.Google will still be there, waiting for you.The best iPhones in 2024: Apple smartphones tested, reviewed and rankedApple Watch Series 10: thinner, lighter and basically the same | ★★★★★Several weeks ago, “First Buddy” Elon Musk and failed presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy were formally appointed as the heads of the new Department of Government Efficiency.
Doge, as Musk insists the department be called, is not part of the US government, but he has given it a gray checkmark on Twitter/X, denoting that it is a “government or multilateral organization account”,Musk and Ramaswamy are, in effect, advisers to Trump,The House oversight committee is creating a subcommittee to work with them,It is mildly funny that a bureau dedicated to paring down bureaucracy requires two heads (and an assist of Marjorie Taylor Greene in the House),In an essay in the Wall Street Journal, they lay out their vision for the nongovernmental government agency.
They plan to work mostly by executive action, by Trump decree, forecasting that the conservative supreme court will agree with his moves,They talk vaguely of efficiencies at a high level – abstracted from specifics as much as possible,For instance: “A drastic reduction in federal regulations provides sound industrial logic for mass head-count reductions across the federal bureaucracy,” These are big words for: “We are going to roll back laws so we can conduct big layoffs,That will lower the government’s costs and increase how much each individual employee works.
”In the same style as Trump, they enumerate their enemies in the form of a cost-cutting list: the media, international cooperation (America first, after all), and liberals.They cite “$535 million a year to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting; $1.5billion for grants to international organizations to nearly $300 million to progressive groups like Planned Parenthood” as examples of what they would cut.In the same breath, they say firing huge swathes of federal employees will not be political retaliation but instead will constitute only apolitical “reductions in force”.They also promise to require all employees to be in the office five days per week.
Musk has tried his damnedest to make Doge seem cutting-edge, but nothing, absolutely nothing, is less punk or sexy than federal spending policy,He’ll need his gift for galvanizing if he’s to pull of Doge’s multibillion-dollar goals,The previous week, the world’s richest man asked for applications from “high-IQ revolutionaries” to his new endeavor,The perks? Long hours, “tedious work” (Elon’s own words) and no pay,Musk and his sidekick’s understanding of government appears limited in their public statements, which is perhaps the point of their appointments but is also an obvious hindrance.
He and Ramaswamy would like to cut all government programs that no longer have active congressional authorization.This idea makes basic logical sense.Yet, as one observer on X pointed out, such an action would ax healthcare for all US military veterans.The authorization for the Veterans’ Health Care Eligibility Act expired in 1998.Doing so would undoubtedly be an enormous political mistake and highly unlikely to get approved, even if it did save taxpayers some $120bn.
Musk has been named Trump’s “secretary of cost-cutting”,If you’re wondering what his approach to cost-cutting has been in the past, the New York Times has compiled a list of expenses he’s slashed at his menagerie of companies,Short version: His tactics worked well at SpaceX, less so at Tesla,SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket costs $550m, whereas Nasa has projected the same spacecraft would cost the agency $4bn to build,At Tesla, Musk refused to use more expensive radar sensors for his cars’ full self-driving mode, opting instead for cameras.
The US is now investigating the autonomous driving software’s role in a slew of fatal crashes,***Use encrypted messaging appsExamples: Signal, Apple iMessage, WhatsApp, Google Messages,Sign up to TechScapeA weekly dive in to how technology is shaping our livesafter newsletter promotion Apple iMessage: This is also end-to-end encrypted when you’re talking to other people with iPhones and if you have advanced data protection turned on,Do that by going into settings, tapping on your Apple ID profile at the top, tapping on iCloud and scrolling down to the “advanced data protection” option and turning it on,Google Messages: End-to-end encrypted conversations have “a banner that says: ‘RCS chat with [contact name or phone number]’” and “a lock on the send button when you compose a message”, per Google.
Disappear your messages: Encrypted messaging apps such as Signal and WhatsApp allow users to set messages to automatically be deleted after a certain period of time.Auto-delete your data Minimize how much data other apps and services are collecting about you and ensure that the data you do allow them to collect is being auto-deleted.Google is the biggest holder of data about you.You can minimize how much data the company stores from your activity page at myactivity.google.
com.Turn off your location settingsLaw enforcement is actively asking tech companies for location information or buying it.All it takes for you to protect yourself is a 15-minute review: On iPhones, you can start by going into your settings and search for “location services” at the top.On Android, start by going to your settings, then “security and privacy”, then “privacy controls”, then “permission manager” and select location.Read the full how-to guide here.
How the far right is weaponising AI-generated content in EuropeSocial media ban for UK under-16s ‘not on the cards’ for now, says ministerWire cutters: how the world’s vital undersea data cables are being targetedNvidia earnings: AI chip leader shows no signs of stopping mammoth growthHarperCollins to allow tech firms to use its books to train AI modelsSee the light pour through: how art can free us from the exhaustion of smartphone addiction | Katy HesselSurveilled review – throw away your phone right now!
Can Daniel Jones be saved with the right team and offense?
In each of the last three seasons, a quarterback who was highly drafted but did not initially fulfill started to flourish in a new location with the right offense and coaching staff.In 2022, the Seattle Seahawks decided 2013 second-round New York Jets pick Geno Smith would replace Russell Wilson as their franchise quarterback after Smith had been a washout with the Jets, the New York Giants, and the Los Angeles Chargers. Smith has been a plus-level starter in the Emerald City ever since.Baker Mayfield was selected by the Cleveland Browns with the first overall pick in 2018, fell out of favor with head coach Kevin Stefanski, and was jettisoned in favor of Deshaun Watson, who joined the team in what may be the worst deal in NFL history. Mayfield had a nice cup of coffee with the Los Angeles Rams, and then signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023
Noah Lyles: ‘America has a winner’s mentality. That’s the good and the bad’
The Olympic 100m champion plays a starring role in the second season of Netflix documentary Sprint. And he is still as outspoken as everShortly after crossing the finish line in the 200m final at this summer’s Olympics, Noah Lyles collapsed to the ground out of breath. He lingered there, gasping and clutching at his chest for what felt like an age before medics arrived and carted him off the Stade de France track in a wheelchair. Later, Lyles made the bombshell revelation that he had been suffering from Covid for three days. The scene, an Olympic cliffhanger that rivaled only the American’s golden photo-finish in the 100m final days earlier, is among the major inflection points in the 2024 track season offered up for closer examination in the second season of Sprint – the hit fly-on-the-wall series that follows some of the biggest names in the sport and released on Netflix this month
Ilona Maher, US rugby Olympian, places second on Dancing with the Stars
The USA rugby union star Ilona Maher came up just short in ABC’s Dancing with the Stars finale on Tuesday night, finishing third in the judge’s scoring but an agonizing second after viewers’ votes were counted too.Before her final dance with her partner, Alan Bursten, Maher summed up the impact of her stint on the show.“I am strong and powerful, but I also can be graceful,” the Olympic sevens bronze medalist said. “So, the Mirrorball [Trophy] won’t be so much for me [if I win it], I think it’ll be for all the girls who’ve been told they’re too big, or they’re too muscly or they’re not pretty.”In the event, the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy – named for the late British judge of the show and its UK equivalent, Strictly Come Dancing – went to Joey Graziadei (star of ABC’s The Bachelor) and dancer Jenna Johnson
Kane Williamson returns for New Zealand’s first Test against England
Perhaps the trick to winning a Test series in India is to switch captains and make it a left-handed opener. It certainly worked for New Zealand, Tom Latham stepping up and leading a 3-0 slice of history three weeks ago – a first since Alastair Cook, a new full-time skipper at the time, led England to a 2-1 win in 2012.Either way, that seismic result now sees Latham and his Black Caps side enter this three-match home series against England in a buoyant mood and still with a chance to make next year’s World Test Championship final. Ben Stokes called the competition “a bit confusing” on Wednesday but was in no doubt about the feat his hosts recently achieved, describing it as “massive for world cricket.”A green surface at Hagley Oval – scene of the first Test that starts on Thursday morning (Wednesday 10pm GMT ) – means New Zealand have dispensed with spinners Ajaz Patel and Mitch Santner
Elvis Smylie: golf gets all shook up over newest star ahead of Australian Open | Jack Snape
He can’t sing and is still trying to put on weight, but Australia’s golfing Elvis has found the spotlight. “Someone actually asked me on the 18th tee at the PGA last week at Royal Queensland, can I sing?,” Elvis Smylie says. “I just smiled, and I said, nowhere near as well as Elvis.”Presley he may not be, but Elvis Smylie’s star is on the rise. The Queenslander held off his mentor Cam Smith in a memorable final round at the Australian PGA on Sunday to secure one of the sport’s most coveted local titles barely a year after his game was stagnating and his promise looked like it may go unfulfilled
Phillip Hughes: the loss of a daring and bright-eyed future is still keenly felt | Geoff Lemon
It’s tempting to say cricket is not important when thinking about Hughes’s death 10 years ago. But the loss of his career is symbolic of a broader lost futureSo here it is. 27 November, the centrepiece of a desperately sad sequence of dates. 25 November, the day 10 years ago when Phillip Hughes was struck by a cricket ball and hospitalised. 27 November, when his life support was ended as futile
No need to mourn exit of Just Eat Takeaway from London Stock Exchange
US economy ‘motoring along’ with 2.8% growth; coffee prices hit near-50 year high – as it happened
TikTok to block teenagers from beauty filters over mental health concerns
Why the US wants to force Google to sell Chrome
Gukesh Dommaraju levels World Chess Championship as Ding Liren loses on time in Game 3
The Spin | Keep the flame alive: Labuschagne and Kohli can learn from Nick Cave