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Google could face a new record penalty from European regulators for forcing its search and navigation tools on smartphones and other devices equipped with Android, which could lead to major changes in the system the most widespread mobile operator in the world. The sanction of Margrethe Vestager, chief competition officer of the European Union, should include a fine making billions of dollars, according to people who know his thought well, marking the second time in as many years as the Antitrust authorities in the region have discovered that Google is threatening businesses and consumers.
Google's policies that push smartphone and tablet manufacturers to use Google's Android operating system to preinstall the technology giant's own apps are at the heart of the EU's imminent decision. In the eyes of the EU, device makers like HTC and Samsung are facing an anti-competitive choice: set Google Search as the default search service and offer Google's Chrome browser, or lose it. access to the popular Android app store. In the absence of this portal, owners of smartphones or Android tablets can not easily download games or other applications – or Google's competitor services – offered by third-party developers.
Vestager argues that the provisions guarantee the continued dominance of Google's Internet ecosystem. As a result, its upcoming decision may prohibit Google from entering into such installation agreements with device manufacturers, experts said. Alternatively, the EU could force the company to give consumers an easier way to change services, like search engines, on their phones or tablets.
A spokesman for Vestager declined to comment. Google also declined to comment. A Google spokeswoman pointed to the comments of general attorney Kent Walker when the EU announced its probe in 2016.
"Android has unleashed a new generation of innovation and competition between platforms, "he said. "In every way, it's the most open, flexible, and differentiated mobile computing platform."
For Google, the consequences could be vast. Packaging tools like Search, and their inclusion on Android devices, offers the company a way to capture user data – and show them more ads. Eliminating this path for profits and insight could spur Google to rethink the entire ecosystem for Android, which it is licensing free to device manufacturers to ensure its adoption on a large scale while avoiding competitors like Apple.
to take Google's apps, but if you want to have some applications, you must have all the following, "said Jakob Kucharczyk, vice president of competition and regulatory policy of the computer industry and communications. This helps Google "to make sure they can fund open source in the first place," he said.
The potential fine underlines how Europe has become the world's most aggressive regulator of American technology giants. After a dozen years of examination, Europe hit Google last year with a fine of 2.7 billion dollars (about 18,600 billion rupees) for allegedly classifying its own comparison service higher in search results than its competitors.
and polls contrast sharply with the United States, where federal regulators concluded a more limited investigation on Google in 2013 without requiring the company to make major changes. Armed with more competitive competition and consumer protection laws, Vestager and his EU counterparts have recently imposed heavy fines and other penalties against Apple for alleged tax evasion and Facebook for breaching its previous ones. promises of confidentiality. Apple does not face a similar review on the apps that it preloads on its phones, in part because it makes its own devices. (Google's own Pixel phones have a small share of the Android market.)
"We are currently facing a situation where European consumers are better protected than US consumers," said Luther Lowe, vice president of politics. from Yelp, one of the companies that has lobbied for strong antitrust regulations from Google.
If the EU attacks Google for Android, the decision could once again boost political pressure on US antitrust authorities, including the Federal Trade Commission, to open their own investigations. Some members of Congress recently invited the FTC to reconsider Google
. In the official list of allegations from the EU, announced in 2016, Vestager challenged the way Google handles Android. For example, device manufacturers who preinstall Google's own apps are not allowed by law to sell Android smartphones or tablets running modified versions of the operating system.
Google ensures that Android is an open source operating system. a consistent experience for users even if they change device. But Vestager argued that it prevents consumers from "buying" innovative smart mobile devices based on alternative, potentially superior, versions of the Android operating system, "she said in 2016. [19659002] Finally, the decision of the EU might not be the last word. question: Google would be able to appeal, although in the meantime, it should change its business practices or risk additional financial penalties for each day it does not comply.
However, President Donald Trump is ready to visit Brussels this week. His announcement is still expected before much of the EU government leaves for the summer holidays.
© The Washington Post 2018
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