DOJ proposing forced sale of Google Chrome, could fetch $20 billion if judge OKs: ReportBloomberg reported the U.S. Justice Department aims to force Google to sell Chrome, which could fetch as much as $20 billion.Jonathan LimehouseUSA TODAYShow CaptionHide CaptionShould Google be broken up?What might 'googling' something look like if the DOJ forces the tech giant to break its divisions apart?Corrections & clarifications: This story has been updated to reflect the U.S. Department of Justice is reportedly aiming to force a sale of Google Chrome.The U.S. Department of Justice aims to force the sale of Google Chrome, which could fetch as much as $20 billion if a federal judge agrees to the browser's sale, Bloomberg reported, a potentially huge blow to the world's second-largest technology company.The fate of the Chrome browser owned by Alphabet Inc., the parent holding company of Google, is in the hands of U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta, who ruled in August that Google illegally monopolized the search market, according to the memorandum opinion obtained by USA TODAY.Alphabet Inc. paying a total of $26 billion in 2021 to make Chrome the default option on smartphones and web browsers blocked other competitors from succeeding in the same market, Mehta ruled, per Bloomberg News, which cited people familiar with the plans."Googles dominance has gone unchallenged for well over a decade," according to Mehta's memorandum opinion. "Googles distribution agreements foreclose a substantial portion of the general search services market and impair rivals opportunities to compete."USA TODAY contacted Google's attorneys and the Justice Department on Wednesday but did not immediately receive a response.Done with X? How to delete your Twitter account in a few easy steps.States join in on antitrust suit against GoogleThe Justice Department asked Mehta to set requirements for Google's artificial intelligence and Android smartphone operating system, Bloomberg reported, citing "people familiar with the plans."Antitrust officials and states that have joined the suit filed by the original plaintiff, Colorado, plan to recommend on Wednesday that Mehta enforce data licensing requirements, Bloomberg reported, again citing the people who asked not to be named.Some of the states that have joined the suit include Tennessee, Missouri, Indiana, Texas, South Carolina, Montana, Florida, Mississippi, Wisconsin, California, Michigan, Arkansas, Washington, Florida, Louisiana and Kentucky, court records show.The next status conference for the case is on Nov. 26, District of Columbia court records show.What would the sale of Google Chrome mean?Google selling Chrome would affect the company's advertising business. Alphabet Inc. currently has a market capitalization of more than $2 trillion, and "much of that value is due to Googles extremely profitable advertising business," according to Mehta's memorandum opinion.Chrome is the most used browser in the U.S., with 61% of the market, according to web traffic analytics firm StatCounter. Google Search has over88% of the search engine marketin the U.S., the firm said.Google also used Chrome to direct people to Gemini, the company's flagship AI product, which could go from an answer-bot to an assistant that follows users around the web, Bloomberg reported."The integration of generative AI is perhaps the clearest example of competition advancing search quality," Mehta's memorandum opinion reads.If the sale goes through, Chrome would be worth at least $15-$20 billion, given it has over 3 billion monthly active users, Bloomberg Intelligence analystMandeep Singh said."Its not directly monetizable, Bob ODonnell of TECHnalysis Research told Bloomberg about Chrome. It serves as a gateway to other things. Its not clear how you measure that from a pure revenue-generating perspective.Google: DOJ pushing a 'radical agenda'Lee-Anne Mulholland, Googles vice president of regulatory affairs, told USA TODAY in a statement on Wednesday that the Justice Department continues to push a radical agenda that goes far beyond the legal issues in this case.""The government putting its thumb on the scale in these ways would harm consumers, developers and American technological leadership at precisely the moment it is most needed," Mulholland said.During President-elect Donald Trump's first term, he led the Justice Department's antitrust suit against Google in 2020 after it deemed the company used illegal tactics and strategies to monopolize search engines. It is unclear if Trump will continue to support the DOJ's efforts against Google.