Justice Department reportedly pushing Google to spin off Chrome

The Department of Justice is reportedly pushing to force Google to spin off its Chrome browser business.

That’s according to Bloomberg, which reports that the Justice Department is also planning to recommend to a federal judge that Google face antitrust requirements related to AI and its Android mobile operating system.

The enforcement actions are the product of the Justice Department’s historic multiyear case against Google, which sought to prove that the tech giant has a web search monopoly in the U.S. The Justice Department won its case in August; federal judge Amit Mehta ruled that Google broke antitrust laws in both online search and search text ads markets.

Why target Chrome? The Justice Department argues that it represents a key access point through which many people use Google Search. Chrome controls about 61% of the browser market in the U.S., according to web traffic service StatCounter.