According to Reuters, citing people familiar with the matter, the EU may slap Google with an over one billion euros fine. This is the fourth Google fine in the continent that may exceed a billion euros. In June last year, the European Commission launched a probe into Google’s ad business, claiming that the company may have violated the competition rules and benefited from an unfair advantage over rivals.
Google ad business has always been suspected of violating the competition rules
The outlet reports that the charges against Google will be issued early next year. Additionally, Google tried to settle the lawsuit with the EU last year and avoid paying a hefty fine. However, the proposed concessions were reportedly “minor and very preliminary,” but Google has time to offer better concessions to address EU concerns. The European Commission has refused to comment on the matter, but it told third parties to delete confidential details in their submissions. This will prevent Google from accessing documents following the receipt of a statement of objections. In June, the EU also launched a probe into Google’s ad practices on YouTube, accusing the company of not allowing ads from rivals to be displayed on the platform. The European Union has always been skeptical of Google’s business practices in the continent. In the last decade, Google has paid over $7.7 billion in fines to the EU to settle antitrust lawsuits. Besides the EU Commission, independent watchdogs of each country have also imposed heavy fines on Google. Just recently, sources reported that Google might face a $25.4 billion fine in the UK and Netherlands. Even in the United States, Google constantly faces fines over violating users’ privacy and tracking them without consent.
