After Australia’s competition regulator discovered Google struck anticompetitive agreements with major telecommunications companies to preinstall its search app on Android phones, Google agreed to pay 55 million Australian dollars ($35.8 million) in penalties.
On Monday, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said Google paid Telstra and Optus a portion of advertising income derived from Google Search in return for exclusivity, thus preventing competing search engines from showing up on fresh Android phones.
Google admitted that the agreements had a significant negative influence on rivalry, the ACCC noted, and had since discontinued such activities. Google and the watchdog both informed the Federal Court that the business ought to be fined; a final judgment on the punishment is still pending.
ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb greeted the result, noting it “created the opportunity for millions of Australians to have more search choices in the future and for rival search providers to get significant exposure to Australian consumers.”
Stressing that the clauses involved “haven’t been in our commercial agreements for some time,” a Google representative said the company was “pleased to address the ACCC’s worries.” The spokesman said Google is still dedicated to providing Android device manufacturers flexibility while keeping capabilities that enable them to compete with Apple and keep prices cheap.
The fine is levied during a difficult phase for Google in Australia. The company mostly lost a case against Fortnite creator Epic Games last week, which charged Google and Apple with suppressing competition in their app stores. Reversing a previous exemption, Google-owned YouTube was also included in Australia’s ban on social media sites available to those under 16 in July.
Approved by the court, the punishment will be among the biggest fines levied against a tech company in Australia for anticompetitive behavior.
