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Report: Google could be hit with an up to $11B antitrust fine from the EU
The European Union may be gearing up to hit Google Inc. with a massive, multibillion-dollar fine as part of an antitrust probe focused on Android.
The information comes courtesy of reports published in the Financial Times and Politico late Wednesday. The latter publication cited multiple people with “direct knowledge” of the investigation as saying that the EU will issue the fine as as early as next month. However, they cautioned that there’s a chance the announcement will be pushed back.
The Financial Times’ sources, in turn, said the penalty could be as big as $11 billion. Brussels previously ruled that Google must pay $2.7 billion for abusing its search engine algorithms. Specifically, the EU charged that the company had prioritized its e-commerce service over others in violation of the body’s antitrust laws.
Similar antitrust allegations are driving the ongoing probe into Android. The investigation was launched in 2016, when the EU accused Google of abusing the mobile operating system’s leadership position to prop up its other products unfairly.
The tech giant allegedly made device makers’ Google Play Store licensing rights contingent on their prepackaging its Chrome apps and search services with their handsets. According to Brussels, Google also used app store access as leverage to prevent the use of forked Android versions. And the list doesn’t end there.
The EU claims that the tech giant paired the access restrictions with “significant financial incentives” for partners that didn’t prepackage any competing search services with their products. This practice allegedly focused not only on device makers but also mobile carriers.
It remains to be seen exactly how big of a fine the EU will impose on Google, assuming the reports are accurate. Plus, Brussels may decide to take other measures besides just imposing a financial penalty, if last year’s e-commerce ruling is any indication. The search giant was ordered not only to pay $2.7 billion but also change its business practices.
Image: Uncalno Tekno/Flickr
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