Google faces another test in EU court over €1.5 billion fine

An EU court will rule on Wednesday on Google’s appeal against a 1.49 billion euro ($1.65 billion) fine imposed by the European Union, a week after the U.S. tech giant suffered a stinging legal defeat over a higher fine.

Regulators around the world are increasing pressure on Google’s parent company Alphabet, launching lawsuits and investigations into one of the world’s most valuable companies.

Brussels claimed a victory last week when the EU’s top court in Luxembourg upheld a €2.42 billion fine imposed on Google in 2017 for abusing its dominant position by favouring its own price comparison service.

The European Commission, setting the course for action to combat abuses by big tech companies, imposed fines on Google totalling €8.2 billion between 2017 and 2019 for antitrust violations.

At stake on Wednesday is the third of a series of fines, worth 1.49 billion euros, imposed by the EU’s powerful antitrust watchdog after it found that Google was abusing its dominant position through its AdSense advertising service.

The Luxembourg High Court will publish its decision on Google’s appeal against the fine after 07:30 GMT.

Google asked the court to set aside – in whole or in part – the commission’s decision and/or to annul or reduce the fine.

The long-running legal battle between Google and the EU does not end there.

More powers for the EU

Google is also challenging a €4.3 billion fine imposed by Brussels for introducing restrictions on Android smartphones in a bid to boost internet searches.

The fine imposed in 2018 remains the highest antitrust fine in EU history.

The Court of First Instance in 2022 slightly reduced the fine to €4.1 billion, but broadly supported the Commission’s argument that Google had imposed illegal restrictions.

The legal saga in this case continues after Google appealed the latest decision to the higher court of the European Court of Justice.

The European Union has since armed itself with a more powerful legal weapon, known as the Digital Markets Act (DMA), to curb the influence of the world’s biggest technology companies, including Google.

Instead of regulators uncovering egregious antitrust violations over years of investigation, the DMA provides companies with a list of what they can and cannot do online.

The aim is to get tech giants to change their ways before there is a need to impose deterrent fines.

Google is already the subject of one investigation under the DMA, along with Facebook owner Meta and Apple.

Problems with assembly

Google has also found itself in the crosshairs of US regulators.

Last week, the tech giant faced its second major antitrust lawsuit in less than a year. The U.S. government accused Google of having a monopoly on ad technology—a complex system that decides which online ads people see and how much they cost.

The decision comes after a US judge ruled in August that Google’s search engine constitutes an illegal monopoly, threatening to break up the tech giant.

Advertising technology is the subject of numerous investigations by regulators around the world.

British regulators in their preliminary findings earlier this month said Google was abusing its dominant market position.

Last year, the EU similarly found that Google was distorting competition in the market and recommended that it be forced to divest from its advertising technology business.

Google has the right to respond in the UK and EU cases before regulators make final decisions.

Alphabet said in July that online advertising search revenue rose to $48.5 billion in the second quarter of this year.

Source: AFP