The clash between Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and the EU antitrust office is finally heading to court this week. In 2017, the EU’s antitrust office, headed by Margrethe Vestager, slapped a 2.4 billion euro ($2.6 billion) fine on Google. The antitrust regulator issued the fine after its investigation faulted Google’s practice in turning up shopping search results.
Specifically, the regulator argued that Google favored its own online shopping service at competitors’ expense. However, Google strongly disagreed with the regulator’s conclusion. The company took the dispute to the EU’s General Court in Luxembourg.
Google and EU court hearing starts this week
The court hearing will start on Wednesday. The hearing will run for three days and end on Friday, according to a Bloomberg report on Monday. In the argument, Google will seek to show the court that the EU’s antitrust fine is “wrong on the law, the facts, and the economics,” according to the Bloomberg report.
Google’s goal is to overturn the fine and break free from the EU’s conditions.
Google takes $5.0 billion fine over Android licensing terms
The EU has hit Google with three antitrust fines running to about $10 billion since 2017. Besides the fine related to shopping search results, the EU fined Google for about $5.0 billion in 2018. In that case, the regulator faulted Google’s terms of licensing its Android software to smartphone makers.
After years of investigations, the regulator concluded that Google was treating phone makers unfairly. Specifically, the regulator had an issue with the requirement that Android manufacturers preload Google apps on their devices. Google is also challenging the Android antitrust fine in court.
In 2019, the EU’s antitrust office hit Google with a fine of about $1.6 billion on charges that the company mistreated publishers using its AdSense tool to monetize their sites. The company is appealing that fine.
Investors look past antirust headaches
Google’s court fight with the EU’s antitrust office opens as it gets ready for a battle with US antitrust authorities. Last year, several US agencies opened antitrust investigations into Google, which exposed the company to billions of dollars in potential fines.
However, investors are looking past Google’s regulatory woes in the US and the EU. The stock of Google parent Alphabet has gained more than 10% year-to-date, even though the antitrust scrutiny on Google has intensified. As a result, Alphabet is one of the top-three FAANG stocks alongside Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) in 2020.
"fine" - Google News
February 11, 2020 at 02:40PM
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Google And EU To Square Off In Court Over $2.6 Billion Fine - Market Realist
"fine" - Google News
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