EU fines Google $1.7 billion for breaching antitrust rules

The European Commission called Wednesday for more efforts to ensure adoption of security proposals and fined Google €1.49 billion (USD $1.7 billion) for breaching EU antitrust rules.

Market dominance is not illegal under EU antitrust rules. However, dominant companies have a special responsibility not to abuse their powerful market position by restricting competition, either in the market where they are dominant or in separate markets. The EU’s decision concludes that Google has been dominant in the market for online search advertising intermediation in the European Economic Area (EEA) since at least 2006. The EU says Google has abused its market dominance by imposing a number of restrictive clauses in contracts with third-party websites which prevented Google’s rivals from placing their search adverts on these websites.

“This is illegal under EU antitrust rules. The misconduct lasted over 10 years and denied other companies the possibility to compete on the merits and to innovate—and consumers the benefits of competition,” said EU competition policy Commissioner Margrethe Vestager.

The decision requires Google to stop its illegal conduct, to the extent it has not already done so, and to refrain from any measure that has the same or equivalent object or effect. Google is also liable to face civil actions for damages that can be brought before the courts of the Member States by any person or business affected by its anti-competitive behavior.

Source: Jurist