Key Takeaways
- Google dodged a $1.7 billion antitrust fine in the EU due to procedural errors made in the original judgment.
- The Court agreed with the EU Commission’s findings that Google engaged in anticompetitive practices.
- The EU has another investigation ongoing into Google’s practices, and could appeal this latest decision.
Executives at Google are surely celebrating right now. The company just dodged a massive antitrust fine levied by the European Union back in 2019, thanks to a decision by the EU’s General Court that overturned the original judgment.
It’s a milestone win for Google. The court annulled the fine after citing that procedural errors were made (via TechCrunch).
The courts agree with the Commission’s findings
The European Commission slapped Google with a fine of $1.7 billion in 2019 following an investigation into Google’s AdSense for Search, which allows publishers to display Google search results and ads on their websites. The Commission charged Google with abusing its dominant position by imposing strict conditions in its contracts with publishers that hindered online competition.
There was a long list of clauses the Commission concluded were anticompetitive, including:
- Exclusivity requirements.
- Preventing publishers from placing ads on competitors’ search engines.
- Requiring premium placement of Google Ads on websites.
- Restricting the ability of publishers to modify the appearance of Google Ads.
Google appealed the Commission’s 2019 decision. It argued that the Commission had failed to consider all the relevant factors in assessing the duration of these clauses. This was what ultimately led to the overturning of the fine by the court.
In fact, the court agreed with the Commission’s findings and upheld them all. However, the procedural misstep is what ultimately led to the court having to overturn the entire decision, including that massive fine.
Here’s what could happen next
The European Union can appeal the decision to the Court of Justice, the bloc’s highest court. It has not yet said if it will or not. In the meantime, Google welcomed the judgment and said the case was focused on a limited aspect of its business that it had changed way back in 2016.
Google and other tech giants have been under increased scrutiny from regulators in Europe and the US as their market dominance is questioned. Google was recently sued by the US Department of Justice for breaching antitrust rules. There’s also a separate European Union investigation ongoing into Google’s role in the adtech supply chain.
Google’s executives may be celebrating this victory, but there’s a long road ahead for the company. The EU may appeal, and there are bound to be more investigations in the future. Google will need to be on its best behavior.
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