European Commission fines Google in ad-tech antitrust case
The search engine giant was slapped a Sh448.6 billion fine over favoring its own advertising services. Google said it will appeal, while Trump condemned the fine as "discriminatory."
The European Commission imposed on Friday a fine of $3.47 billion (Sh448.6 billion) on search engine Google over abusive online advertising practices.
"Google abused its dominant position in ad-tech, harming publishers, advertisers, and consumers. This behaviour is illegal under EU antitrust rules," EU competition chief Teresa Ribera said.
More To Read
- Google must share search data with competitors, judge rules
- Google’s 'Nano Banana' breaks ground in AI creativity
- Editors, reporters challenged to adopt AI but maintain human oversight
- Google says developers distributing Android Apps outside Play Store must verify identity
- Will ECOWAS meet its 2027 currency launch goal?
- Google launches real-time video editing shortcut in Google Drive
The commission ordered the US tech giant to end its "self-preferencing practices" and take steps to stop "conflicts of interest" along the advertising technology supply chain.
The fine comes despite US President Donald Trump's threats to sanction the EU should the 27-country bloc issue regulations which affect big US tech companies, with the EU's trade head pausing the sanctions, seemingly amid fear of US retaliation.
What did Google say about the fine?
The company said the fine was "unjustified" and that it would appeal, labelling the decision "wrong."
"It imposes an unjustified fine and requires changes that will hurt thousands of European businesses by making it harder for them to make money," Lee-Anne Mulholland, the company's global head of regulatory affairs, said in a statement.
This is the third fine announced against Google within a week, with a US federal jury ordering on Tuesday the tech giant to pay $425 million (Sh54.95 billion) for collecting information from smartphones despite users even when people opted for privacy settings.
France's data protection authority, meanwhile, fined Google €325 million (Sh48.97 billion) on the same day for failing to respect the law on internet cookies.
Trump criticises fine as 'discriminatory' and 'very unfair'
Trump was quick to condemn the fine, saying Europe was "effectively taking money that would otherwise go to American investments and jobs."
"Very unfair, and the American taxpayer will not stand for it! As I have said before, my administration will not allow these discriminatory actions to stand," Trump said in a post on his own Truth Social platform.
The US president also condemned another EU fine on Apple, saying the US computer giant "should get their money back".
In April, the European Commission found Apple and Meta in breach of obligations under the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA), fining the two US companies $572 million (Sh73.94 billion) and €200 million (Sh30.15 billion) respectively.
Trump threatened fresh EU tariffs to "nullify the unfair penalties being charged to these taxpaying American companies".
Top Stories Today
