Benzinga | Sep 27, 2021 04:38PM EDT

Google Appeals Against EU's $5B Penalty On Android Dominance, Seeks To Include Apple

Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) appealed to the European Union to reverse the record $5 billion antitrust fine slapped in 2018, defending that its Android operating system for mobile devices has boosted competition, the Wall Street Journal reports.

What Happened: FairSearch, a group representing Oracle Corp (NYSE: ORCL) and other companies' 2013 complaint triggered the antitrust lawsuit.

Google had allegedly abused the market power of Android by forcing phone makers to pre-install Google Search and Google's Chrome browser to include Google's Play Store for apps.

The EU also ordered changes to the distribution agreements that Google allegedly used to block the rise of potential competitors and secure the dominance of its cash cow search engine on mobile phones.

Google was also held guilty of illegally blocking competing operating systems that discouraged official Android manufacturers from selling devices running unofficial, modified versions of Android.

Why It Matters: The EU's competition and digital-policy chief, Margrethe Vestager, already faces a pending appeal against Google's alleged abuse of the dominance of its search engine to favor its online shopping ads.

Google, Apple Inc's (NASDAQ:AAPL), Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN), and Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) would have to change their business models to ensure a level playing field for rivals as per Vestager's latest rules, Reuters reports.

Google has had to offer the new Android phone users in the EU a choice screen of alternative search engines.

Google has refuted the allegations and sought the inclusion of rival Apple's iPhone and iPad on similar alleged grounds. The EU dismissed Apple's role due to its small market share versus Android.

Price Action: GOOG shares closed lower by 0.79% at $2,830.02 on Monday.

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