Google Loses Fight Against $2.7 Billion EU Antitrust Fine

Alphabet Inc.’s (GOOGL.O) unit Google lost its appeal on Tuesday against a high sentence of 2.42 billion euros ($2.7 billion) levied by EU antitrust regulators in 2017. The internet giant was targeted for anti-competitive tactics, and this included using its dominating position in online search to promote its own price comparison shopping service over smaller European competitors. As part of a broader crackdown on these practices, a fine was imposed.

After concluding that Google’s actions had unjustly affected its competitors by promoting its own services at the top of search results, the European Commission first imposed the penalties. It was believed that this behavior violated EU competition law, which protects fair market practices.

Google took the dispute to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) after a lower tribunal in 2021 affirmed the European Commission’s decision. But the CJEU also decided against Google, reaffirming that, although a company’s dominating position in and of itself is acceptable in the EU, abusing that position in a way that stifles competition and hurts companies as well as customers is severely forbidden.

Google and Alphabet v. Commission (Google Shopping) is the formal case number C-48/22 P. Over the last ten years, Google has been hit with 8.25 billion euros in EU antitrust fines as a result of multiple cases. In addition, Google is awaiting rulings in two more big cases involving its Android mobile operating system and AdSense advertising service.

Moreover, the company faces ongoing scrutiny as it fights new antitrust charges from 2022, which could potentially force it to divest part of its lucrative adtech business. These cases reflect the growing tension between tech giants and European regulators over market dominance and fair competition. ($1 = 0.9060 euros)