Court Overturns Fine Targeting Google’s Online Advertising Practices, Commission May Appeal
Brussels, September 18 – Google secured a significant legal victory on Wednesday after the EU’s General Court overturned a €1.49 billion antitrust fine imposed by the European Commission in 2019. The fine targeted the tech giant’s online advertising practices, specifically ads sold alongside Google search results on third-party websites.
The General Court annulled the Commission’s decision entirely, ruling that the EU’s antitrust authority made errors in its assessment of Google’s contracts. Regulators had accused Google of including exclusivity clauses in its contracts that barred websites from displaying ads sold by its competitors. The Commission argued this stifled competition, leading to higher prices for advertisers and website owners, which could eventually impact consumers.
However, the court found that the Commission failed to prove that these clauses harmed innovation, consumers, or helped Google maintain its dominant position in the online search advertising market. The ruling can be appealed to the EU Court of Justice, the bloc’s highest court, but only on legal grounds.
Commission’s Response and Next Steps
The European Commission stated it would “carefully study the judgment and reflect on possible next steps.” Google, which had already changed its contracts in 2016 to remove the contested provisions, welcomed the decision. “We are pleased that the court has recognised errors in the original decision and annulled the fine,” Google said in a statement, adding that it would review the ruling in detail.
This legal victory for Google follows a separate setback last week, when the company lost a final challenge in a different EU antitrust case involving its shopping comparison service. Both cases are part of a series of fines imposed by the European Commission on Google, amounting to around €8 billion over the last decade.
Broader Antitrust Scrutiny for Big Tech
Google’s legal battles are far from over. The company is currently facing a lawsuit from the U.S. Department of Justice, which alleges that its dominance in digital advertising technology constitutes an illegal monopoly. In the UK, competition regulators recently accused Google of abusing its market position by prioritising its own services in the country’s digital ad sector.
In the EU, antitrust authorities are also investigating Google’s digital ad practices, with some suggesting that breaking up the company may be the only way to resolve competition concerns.
