Google Loses Appeal, Must Pay Record $4.7 Billion Android Fine

Back in 2018, Google was handed a record-setting 4.34 billion-euro ($4.9 billion) fine in Europe for abusing its monopoly on Android. The company has spent the intervening years challenging that decision, but the continent’s highest court has put a stop to that. The Court of Justice of the European Union has affirmed the penalty, meaning Google is out of options.

Google’s fight may not have turned out the way the company wanted, but it wasn’t for nothing. The initial amount was trimmed slightly by a lower court in 2022, bringing the total to a still record-setting 4.1 billion euros ($4.7 billion). And that looks like the amount Google will have to pay since there are no further avenues for appeal.

The fine stems from the way Google bundles apps and services with Android phones. The EU took issue with Google search and Chrome being the default options on Android. Even devices made by other companies, such as Samsung and Xiaomi, include Google apps as the default per the Android licensing agreement, giving Google an unfair advantage, according to European antitrust regulators. This is not to be confused with a 2.95 billion euro ($3.45 billion) fine against Google’s advertising monopoly issued by the European Union last year.

“The appeal ​brought by Google and its parent company Alphabet against the judgment of the ‌General Court is dismissed, thereby confirming the ​penalty imposed for Google Search’s abuse of a dominant position in the context ⁠of the Android operating system,” the judge’s ruling (PDF) said.

The case mirrored Europe’s actions against Windows years earlier when Microsoft was forced to add browser ballot screens to crack Internet Explorer’s dominance. Of course, Microsoft’s browser dominance was crumbling by the time the EU managed to get that implemented. Google’s market position, however, remains firmly in place despite creating similar ballot screens on Android when the ruling was first handed down.

Throughout the case, Google has taken the same position as Microsoft did in its day. There is plenty of competition on Android, Google said, pointing to all the alternative search services and apps users can freely access. CEO Sundar Pichai said in 2018 that Android has created “more choice, not less.” However, as Google well knows, people rarely change the default settings on their phones.

Europe isn’t done

Google still disagrees with the ruling, but it’s moving forward. “In any event, we adapted our agreements to comply with the initial decision back in 2018 and we remain focused on continued innovation and openness for our users, partners and developers,” the company said in a statement.

However, much of Android’s continued focus on openness is a function of legal wrangling. For example, Google is increasing support for third-party app stores and alternative payment methods in the Play Store. That’s great, but it’s only doing so as a result of Epic’s antitrust lawsuit. And at the same time, Google is planning to lock down app distribution on Android with developer verification, which advocates for open source projects characterize as a serious threat.

This case may have reached its conclusion, but the EU isn’t done going after Big Tech. Regulators now have a more powerful tool at their disposal with the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which designates Google and other tech behemoths as “gatekeepers” that warrant additional oversight. The European Commission is currently deciding how it may use the DMA to force Google to open up Android to more AI services and share search data with competitors.