Google and its parent company Alphabet have suffered a major legal defeat in Europe, with the continent’s highest court upholding a record-breaking antitrust fine stemming from practices tied to the Android mobile operating system.
Back in 2018, the European Commission slapped Google with a €4.34 billion penalty, citing agreements the company had in place that required phone manufacturers to pre-install Google Search, the Chrome browser, and the Google Play app store on Android devices. Those agreements also prevented manufacturers from using competing versions of the Android system.
Google challenged that penalty, and a lower court reduced the fine to €4.1 billion in 2022. The tech giant then took its case to the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union — the EU’s top court — in hopes of overturning the ruling entirely.
That effort failed. The court ruled against Google and Alphabet, with judges stating: “The appeal brought by Google and its parent company Alphabet against the judgment of the General Court is dismissed, thereby confirming the penalty imposed for Google Search’s abuse of a dominant position in the context of the Android operating system.”
A Google spokesperson pushed back on the decision, arguing the ruling did not properly account for the company’s investments in keeping Android open, interoperable, and free of charge.
“In any event, we adapted our agreements to comply with the initial decision back in 2018 and we remain focused on continued innovation and openness for our users, partners and developers,” the company said in a statement.
This latest ruling adds to a growing pile of EU antitrust penalties against the tech giant. In total, Google has accumulated nearly €11 billion in fines from European regulators over the past several decades for various violations.
More fines could be on the horizon. Google is currently facing scrutiny under the EU’s Digital Markets Act for allegedly favoring its own products in search results and for certain practices related to its app store.
The case is officially recorded as C-738/22 P Google and Alphabet v Commission.
