It’s a gimmick to get publicity. But if it happens, the company has to generate revenue to pay it off.
Guess how browser makers make money off a ‘free’ product?
Especially AI companies
If Google is forced to sell Chrome, is anything stopping them from simply developing another Chromium based browser and immediately beginning to siphon customers from what is now the competition?
Because that seems to be something that would seriously limit the value of the browser.
I have some personal experience with this! In the Before Times, an anti-trust action like this would also involve a many-year agreement by Google to an oversight committee composed of some engineers and business/economics people. Google would be forced to listen to the panel and enable any follow-ups. The “or else” was typically so astronomical it would be business-ending.
But that was back when we had the rule of law.
The sale often includes a period during which the one selling can’t create a similar product again to compete with what they sold
That typically happens when the seller actually wants to sell though.
Why do you think anti trust rulings couldn’t contain the same limitation? Other than the govt being for sale to the highest bidder, but if Google could influence that the ruling wouldn’t happen in the first place.
They would just invest a bunch of money into a browser and be forced to sell it.
I’d like to see them just open source it.
Chromium already is open source.
Google, being evil: “Sold!”
In cash?
