EC fines Google €1.5bn for abusing ad dominance
March 20, 2019
The European Commission has fined Google €1.49 billion for breaching EU antitrust rules accusing it of abuse by imposing restrictive clauses on clients preventing them placing their search adverts on rival websites.
Commissioner Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, said: “Today the Commission has fined Google €1.49 billion for illegal misuse of its dominant position in the market for the brokering of online search adverts. Google has cemented its dominance in online search adverts and shielded itself from competitive pressure by imposing anti-competitive contractual restrictions on third-party websites. This is illegal under EU antitrust rules. The misconduct lasted over 10 years and denied other companies the possibility to compete on the merits and to innovate – and consumers the benefits of competition.”