EU strikes on Android – Google threatens the multi-billion dollar fines – IDG.se

A year ago, Margrethe Vestager in the same newsroom today and announced that she and the European Commission to initiate a review of Google’s business, and especially around the Android operating system and apps.

Now, this first assessment done. And the conclusion is that Google has used its dominant position in search and mobile market. By introducing restrictions for hardware manufacturers of Android and mobile operators have they violated EU competition law. Which may have damaged their competitors, but especially hindered innovation, said Margrethe Vestager at a press conference today.

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the company’s strategy has been, according to the Commission, was to maintain and strengthen its own position in the search market. But the fear is that it occurred in, unauthorized, the expense of other actors. In a statement sent to Google, and their parent Alphabet seen that there are three main areas where they are suspected of having violated the law.

• Requirements for manufacturers to have the Google search engine and Web browser pre-installed and to have the search engine as the default service in their products, as a term does to license some Google apps.
• do not allow producers to sell smart phones running competing operating system based on Android open source code.
• Provide financial incentives to manufacturers and mobile operators, with the condition that the exclusive install Google search as the default.

Commission believes these strategies led to Google’s position has been strengthened and that it will continue to strengthen. The concern is that it prevents other web browsers from competing with Chrome. But also it hinders the development of other operating systems based on Android source code, which puts a spoke in the wheels of the development of new applications and services.

The criticism of the review has been that the EU use competition law to protect its own industry to give the European digital economy a chance to catch up. That said Margretehe Vestager that their mission is to ensure compliance with the legislation, not to help European companies.

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Google defends its practices and says their conditions and financial incentives not prevent manufacturers from installing other apps. The only thing they do, according to them, is to ask manufacturers to ensure that Google’s apps are used equally on all phones, writes Politico.

The Commission has no deadline for when they have to come up with a final assessment. Today’s announcement is preliminary and Google will now get a chance to speak. Folds Google can now be sentenced to pay a penalty of up to 10 percent of consolidated revenues globally.