Google has lost its appeal against a European Union (EU) antitrust case ruling made in 2017. The appeal was dismissed by the EU's second-highest court, which is known as the General Court.
This means that the $2.8 billion fine the European Commission gave Google is being upheld.
The initial ruling, which the European Commission made, said that the company's usage of its search engine broke antitrust law. The ruling found that Google promoted its shopping comparison service using its search engine while demoting its rivals' services at the same time.
Google and its parent company, Alphabet, may appeal the ruling once more. The appeal can be made with the EU's highest court, the European Court of Justice.
Google Loses Appeal in 2017 EU Antitrust Case
Google has lost its appeal against an EU antitrust case ruling made in 2017. The second-highest court in the EU, the General Court, dismissed the appeal by Google and its parent company, Alphabet.
According to a report by The Verge, the 2017 ruling, which the European Commission made, "found that Google broke antitrust law in how it used its search engine to promote its shopping comparison service and demote those of its rivals."
Per a report by Nasdaq, the General Court said in a statement that it "largely dismisses Google's action against the decision of the Commission finding that Google abused its dominant position by favouring its own comparison shopping service over competing comparison shopping services."
The General Court's dismissal of Google's appeal means that the $2.8 billion fine Google must pay has been upheld. The amount is equivalent to €2.4 billion.
All hope is not lost for Google and Alphabet as they can still file another appeal. Should they decide to do so, the EU's highest court will make the appeal with the European Court of Justice.
Related Article : EU Antitrust Probe Threatens To Hit Google With Heavy Fines
The 2017 Antitrust Case Ruling
According to The Verge, the complaint that was used in the antitrust case against Google was actually filed back in 2009. The shopping comparison service case is actually one of three antitrust cases that the EU filed against Google, according to Nasdaq.
The Verge's report also noted that Google had made necessary changes following the ruling of the European Commission. The allowed modifications "rivals to bid to appear in its shopping search results, but rivals said this just created a new revenue stream for the company without addressing Google's underlying advantage."
In its dismissal of Google's appeal of the 2017 ruling made by the European Commission, the General Court said that it had seen sufficient evidence that Google has broken antitrust law and that its behavior could be considered harmful, according to the report by The Verge.
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Written by Isabella James
