Google has successfully challenged a €1.49 billion fine imposed by the European Union for allegedly blocking rival online search advertisers. The fine was initially levied by the EU, accusing Google of abusing its dominant position by restricting third-party competitors from displaying search ads between 2006 and 2016.
However, Europe's General Court ruled that the European Commission, which imposed the fine, had made errors in its assessment. The Commission stated that it would consider its next steps, which might include appealing the decision to the EU’s highest court.
Google expressed its satisfaction with the ruling, saying, "We are pleased that the court has recognised errors in the original decision and annulled the fine." The company added that it would carefully review the court's full decision.
This victory is a rare legal success for Google, which has faced significant antitrust fines totaling €8.2 billion between 2017 and 2019. Just last week, the company failed to overturn another fine related to antitrust violations.
Google's challenges are not limited to Europe. The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) recently provisionally concluded that the company engaged in anti-competitive practices in its ad tech business. Meanwhile, in the United States, Google is also facing legal action, with prosecutors accusing its parent company, Alphabet, of illegally maintaining a monopoly in the advertising market. Alphabet maintains that its market dominance is a result of the effectiveness of its products.
Restrictive Clauses in AdSense
The case that led to the €1.49 billion fine centered on Google's AdSense product, which serves ads on websites, acting as an intermediary between advertisers and site owners. The European Commission found that Google had used its dominance in the ad tech market to prevent websites from using other brokers besides AdSense for their advertising needs.
According to the Commission, Google also added restrictive clauses to its contracts with websites to strengthen its market position. However, the General Court, while upholding some of the Commission's findings, annulled the fine. The court ruled that the Commission had not taken into account all the relevant details regarding the contract clauses and the definition of the market, thus failing to establish that Google had abused its dominant position.
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