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DOJ seeks changes to Google's search business practices

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Proposals include ending exclusive deals with Apple ( AAPL ),

others

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DOJ wants Google to share data with rivals

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Proposals include Google selling Android should remedies

fail

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Judge sets trial on proposals for April

(Adds comment from Google in paragraphs 6-7, AI provision in

paragraph 10)

By Jody Godoy

Nov 20 (Reuters) - Alphabet's Google must sell

its Chrome browser, share data and search results with rivals

and take other measures - including possibly selling Android -

to end its monopoly on online search, prosecutors argued to a

judge on Wednesday.

The measures presented by the Department of Justice are part

of a landmark case in Washington which has the potential to

reshape how users find information.

They would be in place for up to a decade, enforced via a

court-appointed committee to remedy what the judge overseeing

the case deemed an illegal monopoly in search and related

advertising in the U.S., where Google processes 90% of searches.

"Google's unlawful behavior has deprived rivals not only of

critical distribution channels but also distribution partners

who could otherwise enable entry into these markets by

competitors in new and innovative ways," the DOJ and state

antitrust enforcers said in a court filing on Wednesday.

Their proposals include ending exclusive agreements in which

Google pays billions of dollars annually to Apple ( AAPL ) and

other device vendors to make its search engine the default on

their tablets and smartphones.

Google called the proposals staggering in a statement on

Thursday.

"DOJ's approach would result in unprecedented government

overreach that would harm American consumers, developers, and

small businesses - and jeopardize America's global economic and

technological leadership at precisely the moment it's needed

most," said Alphabet Chief Legal Officer Kent Walker.

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta has scheduled a trial on the

proposals for April, though President-elect Donald Trump and the

DOJ's next antitrust head could step in and change course in the

case.

TECHNICAL COMMITTEE

The proposals are wide-ranging, including barring Google

from re-entering the browser market for five years and insisting

Google sell its Android mobile operating system if other

remedies fail to restore competition. The DOJ has also requested

a prohibition on Google buying or investing in search rivals,

query-based artificial intelligence products or advertising

technology.

Publishers and websites would also be given a way to opt out

of being included in training Google's AI products.

A five-person technical committee appointed by the judge

would enforce compliance under prosecutors' proposals. The

committee, which Google would pay for, would have the power to

demand documents, interview employees and delve into software

code, the filing showed.

The measures together are meant to break "a perpetual

feedback loop that further entrenches Google" through additional

users, data and advertising dollars, prosecutors said.

CHROME AND ANDROID

Chrome is the world's most widely used web browser and is a

pillar of Google's business, providing user information that

helps the company target ads more effectively and profitably.

Google has used Chrome and Android to preference its own

search engine to the detriment of rivals, prosecutors said.

Google has said making it divest Chrome and Android, which

are built on open source code and are free, would harm companies

that have built upon them to develop their own products.

The proposals would bar Google from requiring devices that

run on Android to include its search or AI products.

Google would have the option to sell the software off in

lieu of compliance. The DOJ and state antitrust enforcers would

have to approve any potential buyers.

Google will have a chance to present its own proposals in

December.

DATA SHARING

Google would be required under the proposals to license

search results to competitors at nominal cost and share data it

gathers from users with competitors for free. It would be barred

from collecting any user data that it cannot share because of

privacy concerns.

Prosecutors crafted the proposals after speaking with

companies that compete with Google, including search engine

DuckDuckGo.

"We think this is a really big deal and will lower the

barriers to competition," said Kamyl Bazbaz, DuckDuckGo's head

of public affairs.

DuckDuckGo has accused Google of trying to dodge

European Union rules requiring data sharing. Google said it will

not compromise user trust by giving competitors sensitive data.