Did Chrome pay for the ad placement on Google’s sites? Could Mozilla or Microsoft buy the same spots? Could they pay YouTube to keep the site faster for them than standards-compliant browsers?

If the answer to any of those is no, it’s more than simple advertising.

Yes. My biggest gripe with Google is that they prop up unprofitable products with their wildly popular product. It makes competition impossible. YouTube is the perfect example.

I feel like it should be illegal to use your profits in one industry to run a loss leader in a totally separate industry.

> I feel like it should be illegal to use your profits in one industry to run a loss leader in a totally separate industry.

There’s nothing wrong with running a loss leader, only with squeezing everybody else out.

I think the key part is “separate industry” – Google should have had to restrict Chrome promotion to what was available to other browser vendors (e.g. not the Gmail login page because they don’t sell ad space there).

it would be, if chrome would pay for this ad (and other browsers can compete for the spot). But it doesn't (can't?) and that is exactly what is wrong here.