Google wins a $2.5 billion EU fine for antitrust issues. The court overturned the fine, saying the EU didn’t consider all factors.
More topics for you.This topic continues below.
Suicide bombing in Kabul kills Taliban refugee minister
Sara Duterte Denies threats, skips questioning on alleged plot against President Marcos
In a major legal win for Google, the company has successfully challenged a huge €1.49 billion ($2.5 billion) fine from the European Union. This fine was originally imposed because the EU accused Google of unfair practices with its AdSense advertising platform.
Here's what happened: The European Commission, the EU’s top competition watchdog, said Google was using its power to stop websites from using other advertising brokers. The EU claimed this was against the rules and fined Google for it. This fine was based on actions from 2006 to 2016.
But now, the Luxembourg-based General Court has overturned this fine. The court agreed with the EU on some points but said the Commission didn't fully consider all the details.
According to the court, the EU failed to show that Google’s actions hurt innovation or consumers. The court also said the Commission didn’t prove that Google used its power to strengthen its dominance in online advertising.
Google welcomed the court’s decision. The company explained that the case was only about a small part of its advertising services. Google had already changed its contracts back in 2016, before the fine was imposed. Google said they were happy that the court found errors in the original fine decision.
The European Commission can still appeal this decision to the EU’s top court, the Court of Justice. The Commission has said it will review the judgment and decide if further action is needed.
This fine was one of several large penalties that have hit Google over the years. Another fine of €2.42 billion was related to Google’s comparison shopping service. This was about using its own shopping service to get an unfair edge over smaller competitors in Europe.
The recent court ruling can be appealed, but only on legal points, to the Court of Justice. This is the highest court in the EU.
So, Google has won a key battle, but the legal fight over EU regulations continues. The company is pleased with this result but knows that the EU's top court could still be involved.
