[majormjr]

Why not fork it like Microsoft did with Edge?

[Tepix]

Microsoft Edge is relying on Chromium being contiously developed by Google, isn't it? Not a hard fork that no longer receives updates from upstream.

[tokai]

Cause the value is in the users. The actual browser is close to worthless.

[orbital-decay]

Chrome/Chromium's value is in the development momentum. You can pile up features, manipulate the entire web, and make it impossible to compete for others. This is what they're trying to buy. A fork isn't enough - there's a huge difference between a technical fork and a meaningful fork.