EU wants to fine Google €2.4 billion

Is it justifiable to penalise a tech giant like Google for market dominance?

The EU’s Attorney General has recently endorsed a substantial financial penalty against Google, urging the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) to affirm the decision.

On Thursday, January 11, the Attorney General advised the CJEU to uphold the hefty fine of over €2.4 billion levied by the European Commission against Google.

This fine was initially imposed due to Google’s practice of prioritising its own product comparison service over its rivals’. This recommendation came after Google and Alphabet’s appeal against the Commission’s decision was dismissed by the General Court, confirming the substantial penalty.

Market Dominance And Unfair Practices

The European Commission’s investigation revealed that Google exploited its dominant position in the search service market.

This was done by preferentially showcasing its product comparison results, leading to more user clicks on Google’s services than on those of competitors.

The Commission concluded that this was not due to superior service quality, but rather to self-favouritism and a ‘leverage effect’ stemming from Google’s general results page.

The Commission’s stance is clear: Google’s actions amount to abusive exploitation of its market dominance in online search services.

Consequently, a fine of €2,424,495,000 was imposed on Google. Alphabet, as Google’s sole partner, is jointly liable for €523,518,000 of this amount.

Legal Battles And Final Appeals

Following the fine’s confirmation by the General Court, Google and Alphabet challenged the decision before the CJEU, seeking to overturn the ruling.

However, the Advocate General has recommended that the CJEU dismiss this appeal. She asserted that Google’s alleged self-favouritism represents a distinct form of abuse, by imposing unfair access conditions on competing product comparison services.