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Google might be forced to pay a huge $4.7 billion fine as it looks likely to lose its appeal in a lawsuit.
The tech giant has faced a major setback after its attempt to have a ruling overturned was denied on Thursday (June 19).
Google was facing an antitrust penalty from the European Union (EU) dating back to a case in 2018.
This was when the EU’s executive Commission handed the company the fine after discovering that it had used the dominance of its Android operating system to remove competition and therefore damaging the choices of consumers.
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After filing an initial appeal, Google saw the fine reduced by nearly $700 million but the firm also appealed this decision with the Court of Justice.
Now, the European Court of Justice’s advocate general, Juliane Kokott, has recommended that the appeal should be dismissed, meaning Google might be forced to cough up the cash.
This has come as a major blow to the firm as, while not legal binding, these opinions formed by the advocate general are often followed by judges.
In a statement, the tech company shared that it was ‘disappointed’ to hear this opinion and that if the court decided to follow this advice then it ‘would discourage investment in open platforms and harm Android users, partners and app developers’.
In a statement, Google continued: “Android has created more choice for everyone and supports thousands of successful businesses in Europe and around the world.”
The court confirmed that judges ‘are now beginning their deliberations in this case’, with the judgment planned to be ‘given at a later date’.
This fine is the latest of three that the European Commision has handed to Google in the last 10 years, adding up to over $9 billion in penalties.
This comes as the EU launched an active crackdown on Big Tech companies with new regulations that it hopes will curb market dominance in order to boost competition in the industry.
This includes action being taken against companies considered to be ‘gatekeepers’ under the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and enforcing fines to these firms for violations.
The DMA hopes to limit major tech companies from cutting out their competitions which results in a limited choice for consumers.
Google is currently still awaiting a decision from the EU on an antitrust case regarding its digital ad business.
It looks like Big Tech may need to rethink its strategies for business in Europe.
