take Android ’s massivemobile grocery store share , this was pretty much an inevitability . But today it finally happened for literal : The EU slapped Google ’s parent company Alphabet with a record amercement of closely $ 5.1 billion for dishonor European antimonopoly regulation .
According to EU functionary , Google ’s terms for licensing its full - featured version of the Android OS — which requires gimmick makers to pre - instal Google apps like Chrome , YouTube , Gmail , Google Maps , and the Play Store — violate antimonopoly laws and put contend intersection at an unfair disadvantage .
finely of € 4,34 bn to@Googlefor 3 case of illegal restriction on the function of Android . In this direction it has cement the dominance of its search locomotive engine . deny rivals a chance to innovate and compete on the deservingness . It ’s illegal under EU antitrust rules.@Googlenow has to stop it
Photo: Sam Rutherford (Gizmodo)
— Margrethe Vestager ( @vestager)July 18 , 2018
The opinion cites deals with Samsung , Huawei , HTC , and others as evidence of Google abusing its marketplace ascendency . According to EU Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager , “ Google has used Android as a vehicle to cement the potency of its search engine . These exercise have refuse rival the opportunity to innovate and vie on the deservingness . ”
to boot , the EU enjoin Google ’s history of paying gravid manufacturers to exclusively pre - add the Google Search app is unlawful , and that these practices have made the marketplace less competitive .
Naturally , Google traverse any wrongdoing . Earlier today itposted a blogfrom CEO Sundar Pichai title , “ Android has produce more option , not less . ” In the blog , Pichai argue that the ruling “ ignores the fact that Android earpiece compete with iOS headphone , ” and “ also omit just how much selection Android ply to thousands of phone Almighty and mobile web operators who build and sell Android gimmick . ”
Pichai also says removing a pre - installed app is easy , and in the post , there ’s even a gif showing how long it take on to blue-pencil one and replace it with something else , before Pichai concludes by saying that Google stand for to invoke the decision .
This most recent amercement follows a$2.7 billion fine from 2017 , in which Google was accused of manipulating shopping issue , and comes in the backwash of rising fears of tech giants as a whole , especially after Facebook ’s mishandling of exploiter information in theCambridge Analytica outrage .
And for those who remember back when Microsoft got sued for antitrust in 2001 , it was a very like situation in which the Microsoft was accused of having a monopoly over x86 - establish PCs and web browsers due to the company ’s drill of bundling Internet Explorer with Windows .
However , even if Alphabet is force to turn over over north of $ 5 billion dollars , it ’s not as if Google does n’t have the money to pay up — though with a nett profits of $ 12.6 billion in 2017 , the EU ’s fine would eliminate around 40 percentage of Alphabet ’s gains last year . And if Google refuse to abide by with the EU ’s demands within 90 daylight , the company could get hit with additional penalty worth up to five pct of Alphabet ’s “ modal daily worldwide employee turnover . ”
This is merely the start of a much bigger trend as tech giants front intensifying scrutiny from regulators and consumer alike .
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