Google Fails to Overturn $4.3 Billion Antitrust Fine
Google has failed to overturn its biggest antitrust fine ever after the European Union’s General Court said Wednesday it largely sides with EU regulators, who fined Google US$4.33 billion in 2018 for abusing the dominance of its Android operating system and using it to quash competition.
The decision – which cut the fine by 5% – should boost morale among EU regulators, who have sought to crack down on alleged anticompetitive practices by large U.S. tech firms.
Earlier this year, the Commission lost antitrust cases with Intel and Qualcomm.
South Korea has slapped Google with a US$50 million fine after regulators found that it failed to inform users or obtain proper consent when collecting data for personalized advertising. Google rival Meta faces a US$22 million fine.
Philipp Westerhoff Senior Associate at Hausfeld wrote on his LinkedIn page that in 2005, Google purchased the small startup company Android Inc., for merely $50 million. It was its best acquisition to date and of unquantifiable strategic value (and cheap, compared to the $1.65 billion Google paid for YouTube one year later).
“Today, the General Court of the EU rendered its long-awaited Google Android judgment (Google and Alphabet v Commission, T-604/18). It was the biggest court defeat in the history of the company. READ: Google faces a fine of 20% of Russian revenue
“Somewhere in between, Google went astray and concluded a net of interlocking anti-competitive agreements with OEMs and MNOs.
“Google’s sole purpose was to use the walled-off Android ecosystem to shield its general search service from competition to cement its dominance and protect its search ad revenues. The Court has confirmed this with clear and unambiguous words now.
“A drop of bitterness remains insofar as the most obvious attacks on competition – Google’s exclusivity obligations – remain unpunished for now.
“I am humbled that together with Thomas Höppner, I could contribute to this landmark decision by helping to defend the European Commission’s case before a very well prepared, thorough Chamber together with the Commission’s legal service and our fellow co-interveners against an armada of Google lawyers”, Westerhoff wrote. #Google Fails to Overturn $4.3bn Antitrust Fine
