A federal judge on Wednesday hinted at plans to impose sweeping changes to Google’s Android app store after a jury concluded that the tech giant operated an illegal monopoly that harmed millions of consumers and app developers.

During a three-hour hearing in San Francisco, U.S. District Judge James Donato hinted that the upcoming restructuring could include a requirement that Google’s Play Store offer users the option to download alternative app stores, a measure designed to break the company’s dominance in the app distribution space.

Judge Donato has been considering penalties against Google since December of last year. After a four-week trial, a jury concluded that the Play Store was a monopoly. The jury’s decision was based on Google’s near-exclusive control over the distribution of apps for Android phones and the associated billing systems, a system that generates billions of dollars annually for the company.

In response to the judge’s potential demands, Google expressed concerns that opening up to third-party app stores could expose consumers’ devices to malicious software, leading to what it called “security chaos.”

However, Donato remained true to his stance, stressing the need for a comprehensive overhaul of the Play Store, even if it entails significant costs and operational challenges for Google. The company estimates that the cost of implementing the regulations could reach $600 million, depending on the scope of the judge’s final order.

“We’re going to break down the barriers, that’s what’s going to happen,” Donato told Google’s lawyer, Glenn Pomerantz. “When you’ve built up a mountain of bad behavior, you have to move that mountain.”

Donato said he hopes to issue an order with the changes within the next few weeks, possibly before Labor Day weekend.

Google’s actions during the penalty phase of the Play Store case may offer a foretaste of its strategy in a separate, larger antitrust case in which a different judge declared the company’s search engine an illegal monopoly. Hearings on appeals in that case are scheduled to begin on September 6 in Washington, DC.

In the case of the Play Store, Donato is still considering how much time Google should be given to implement the changes and how long the imposed restrictions should remain in force.

Google has requested 12 to 16 months to make the necessary adjustments. The reason: This time frame is necessary to ensure a smooth transition and to avoid disruptions to Android smartphones. Epic Games, the video game developer that filed the antitrust lawsuit, claims that Google can make the changes in about three months at a cost of around one million dollars.

While Donato did not give a specific timeframe, he indicated that he would likely not give Google the extended deadline it requested.

“Google tells me it will take forever for all this to happen, but I’m skeptical,” the judge noted. “I doubt all this intelligence can’t solve these problems in less than 16 months.”

Epic Games has proposed that the judge’s order remain in effect for six years, but Donato indicated he might consider a shorter duration, possibly five years. Google, on the other hand, prefers that the order expire after one or two years.

Although Donato is preparing Google for a profound restructuring, he assured the company that he has no intention of micromanaging the company’s operations.

“It’s about creating a garden of competing app stores,” the judge said.

With inputs from AP