$4.1 Billion. That’s how much the European Union is looking to rip off Google in an antitrust lawsuit that has become the world’s most expensive fine on a multinational company.
The three-phased case will see the silicon valley-based global search engine giant bleed out a whopping $8.25 billion in total fines for having workspace apps automatically installed on Android devices.
Google’s trademark mobile operating system—Android, is the world’s most popular operating system serving over 2.5 billion people including millions of European businesses. The EU however tends to think otherwise.
Brussels claims that pre-installed Google apps like Chrome and Playstore prevent a level playing field for smaller search engine competitors like DuckDuckGo. This is why the European General Court upheld the $4.13billion fine.
For a region drenched in energy crisis, fraught with multiple conflicts, and sinking in the mire of an economic depression without a grip on obstinate members, the EU appears to be frantically hunting for soft targets to refill its dwindling purse.
Twice stung by ex-PM Johnson’s Brexit move and Donald Trump’s explosive criticism accompanied by a funding cut back, Ursula Von de Leyen’s’ EU is fighting back her critics rather than addressing her growing problems.
She is however lucky to have a clueless Biden at the helm of America’s affairs.
The US lawmakers must rise to save its indigenous multinationals from intercontinental rip-offs. There are several ways to foster healthy competition—an $8billion legally-approved extortion is not one of them.
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