Google "denied other companies the chance to compete on the merits and to innovate," the European Commission said. (Photo: Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP)
Jun 27, 2017
In a move commentators characterized as a "promising" step in the direction of regulating and reining in large and powerful tech firms, the European Commission on Tuesday slapped Google with a $2.7 billion fine for violating antitrust rules and "abus[ing] its market dominance."
"American antitrust authorities are so pathetic as to be irrelevant."
--Matt Stoller, New AmericaSpecifically, the commission noted in a press release, Google was penalized for using its leverage to give "an illegal advantage" to its own shopping service, which had the effect of boxing out potential competition.
Matt Stoller, a fellow at New America's Open Markets Program, responded by saying that the EU's decision to take action against Google provides a stark contrast to the inaction of American regulators, who have in recent years done relatively little to prevent large companies from merging and drowning out competitors.
"This $2.7 [billion] fine is not a parking ticket for Google," Stoller wrote. "It opens the door to civil suits. And Google has to change its behavior."
Leadership on curbing monopoly power has been in Europe, not the U.S., "for some time," Stoller added. "American antitrust authorities are so pathetic as to be irrelevant."
The fine--the largest ever leveled against a single company by the EU in an antitrust case--marks the end of a seven-year investigation into Google's practices.
The commission further explained its decision:
The Commission Decision does not object to the design of Google's generic search algorithms or to demotions as such, nor to the way that Google displays or organises its search results pages (e.g. the display of a box with comparison shopping results displayed prominently in a rich, attractive format). It objects to the fact that Google has leveraged its market dominance in general internet search into a separate market, comparison shopping. Google abused its market dominance as a search engine to promote its own comparison shopping service in search results, whilst demoting those of rivals.
"What Google has done is illegal under [European Union] antitrust rules. It denied other companies the chance to compete on the merits and to innovate. And most importantly, it denied European consumers a genuine choice of services and the full benefits of innovation," said European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager in a statement.
In an op-ed for the Guardian, journalist Nils Pratley echoed Stoller's argument.
The E.U. regulators' "consumer-friendly action...should be applauded," he wrote, adding that the move could have "far-reaching consequences."
"The wonder is that U.S. regulators, who once upon a time had an honourable record of acting against powerful monopolists, have been so supine with the technology giants," Pratley concluded.
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
In a move commentators characterized as a "promising" step in the direction of regulating and reining in large and powerful tech firms, the European Commission on Tuesday slapped Google with a $2.7 billion fine for violating antitrust rules and "abus[ing] its market dominance."
"American antitrust authorities are so pathetic as to be irrelevant."
--Matt Stoller, New AmericaSpecifically, the commission noted in a press release, Google was penalized for using its leverage to give "an illegal advantage" to its own shopping service, which had the effect of boxing out potential competition.
Matt Stoller, a fellow at New America's Open Markets Program, responded by saying that the EU's decision to take action against Google provides a stark contrast to the inaction of American regulators, who have in recent years done relatively little to prevent large companies from merging and drowning out competitors.
"This $2.7 [billion] fine is not a parking ticket for Google," Stoller wrote. "It opens the door to civil suits. And Google has to change its behavior."
Leadership on curbing monopoly power has been in Europe, not the U.S., "for some time," Stoller added. "American antitrust authorities are so pathetic as to be irrelevant."
The fine--the largest ever leveled against a single company by the EU in an antitrust case--marks the end of a seven-year investigation into Google's practices.
The commission further explained its decision:
The Commission Decision does not object to the design of Google's generic search algorithms or to demotions as such, nor to the way that Google displays or organises its search results pages (e.g. the display of a box with comparison shopping results displayed prominently in a rich, attractive format). It objects to the fact that Google has leveraged its market dominance in general internet search into a separate market, comparison shopping. Google abused its market dominance as a search engine to promote its own comparison shopping service in search results, whilst demoting those of rivals.
"What Google has done is illegal under [European Union] antitrust rules. It denied other companies the chance to compete on the merits and to innovate. And most importantly, it denied European consumers a genuine choice of services and the full benefits of innovation," said European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager in a statement.
In an op-ed for the Guardian, journalist Nils Pratley echoed Stoller's argument.
The E.U. regulators' "consumer-friendly action...should be applauded," he wrote, adding that the move could have "far-reaching consequences."
"The wonder is that U.S. regulators, who once upon a time had an honourable record of acting against powerful monopolists, have been so supine with the technology giants," Pratley concluded.
In a move commentators characterized as a "promising" step in the direction of regulating and reining in large and powerful tech firms, the European Commission on Tuesday slapped Google with a $2.7 billion fine for violating antitrust rules and "abus[ing] its market dominance."
"American antitrust authorities are so pathetic as to be irrelevant."
--Matt Stoller, New AmericaSpecifically, the commission noted in a press release, Google was penalized for using its leverage to give "an illegal advantage" to its own shopping service, which had the effect of boxing out potential competition.
Matt Stoller, a fellow at New America's Open Markets Program, responded by saying that the EU's decision to take action against Google provides a stark contrast to the inaction of American regulators, who have in recent years done relatively little to prevent large companies from merging and drowning out competitors.
"This $2.7 [billion] fine is not a parking ticket for Google," Stoller wrote. "It opens the door to civil suits. And Google has to change its behavior."
Leadership on curbing monopoly power has been in Europe, not the U.S., "for some time," Stoller added. "American antitrust authorities are so pathetic as to be irrelevant."
The fine--the largest ever leveled against a single company by the EU in an antitrust case--marks the end of a seven-year investigation into Google's practices.
The commission further explained its decision:
The Commission Decision does not object to the design of Google's generic search algorithms or to demotions as such, nor to the way that Google displays or organises its search results pages (e.g. the display of a box with comparison shopping results displayed prominently in a rich, attractive format). It objects to the fact that Google has leveraged its market dominance in general internet search into a separate market, comparison shopping. Google abused its market dominance as a search engine to promote its own comparison shopping service in search results, whilst demoting those of rivals.
"What Google has done is illegal under [European Union] antitrust rules. It denied other companies the chance to compete on the merits and to innovate. And most importantly, it denied European consumers a genuine choice of services and the full benefits of innovation," said European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager in a statement.
In an op-ed for the Guardian, journalist Nils Pratley echoed Stoller's argument.
The E.U. regulators' "consumer-friendly action...should be applauded," he wrote, adding that the move could have "far-reaching consequences."
"The wonder is that U.S. regulators, who once upon a time had an honourable record of acting against powerful monopolists, have been so supine with the technology giants," Pratley concluded.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.