Europe Fines Google Nearly €3 Billion for Advertising Abuses

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The European Commission has fined Google €2.95 billion for anti-competitive practices in the ad tech sector, the fourth major fine for the company in a decade-long antitrust battle with EU regulators. The decision follows a complaint from the European Publishers Council and earlier threats from US President Donald Trump about possible retaliation against the EU’s actions against big tech companies.

“When markets collapse, public institutions must act to prevent dominant players from abusing their power,” EU Competition Commissioner Teresa Ribera said, according to Bloomberg. She noted that true freedom means a level playing field where everyone competes equally and citizens have a real choice.

The EC fined Google at a tense moment in US-European trade relations, Bloomberg notes. The European Commission’s decision was prompted by a complaint from the European Publishers Council and came amid a threat by the US president to respond to any pressure on Big Tech, Reuters notes. The fine was the fourth in the company’s decade-long battle with European antitrust regulators, the agency notes.

Google, for its part, criticized the decision, intending to appeal it in court and called the fine unjustified. Google’s vice president of regulatory affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland said the European Commission’s requirements would harm thousands of European companies by making it difficult for them to monetize.

Google, for its part, criticized the decision, intending to appeal it in court and called the fine unjustified. Google’s vice president of regulatory affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland said the European Commission’s requirements would harm thousands of European companies by making it difficult for them to monetize