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Reuters has obtained a document that shows how the European Union intends to punish Alphabet/Google for antitrust violations:
EU antitrust regulators plan to order Alphabet's Google to stop paying financial incentives to smartphone makers to pre-install Google Search exclusively on their devices and warned the company of a large fine, an EU document showed. The document, running to more than 150 pages, was sent to complainants last week for feedback. Google received a copy in April in which the European Commission accused it of using its dominant Android mobile operating system to shut out rivals.
The EU competition enforcer in its charge sheet, known as a statement of objections, said it planned to tell the U.S. technology giant to halt payments or discounts to mobile phone manufacturers in return for pre-installing Google's Play Store with Google Search.
The regulators also want to prevent Google from forcing smartphone makers to pre-install its proprietary apps if this restricts their ability to use competing operating systems based on Android. Google "cannot punish or threaten" companies for not complying with its conditions, according to the document seen by Reuters.
The Commission's investigation followed a complaint by FairSearch, a lobby group supported by companies that want to ensure they are not disadvantaged by search engine market dominance, in March 2013. Google could face a large fine because the anti-competitive practices, which started from January 2011, are still ongoing, the document said.
Here is the FairSearch website.
(Score: 2) by frojack on Monday October 03 2016, @01:08AM
Its probably which ever way the money flows.
I'm sure Facebook is happy to pay for foisting its spyware onto every phone in the world.
The thing is, the vast majority of people, if handed a phone with no apps other than an assortment of various "play stores" and play-store wanna-bes will still go to the store they trust the most, and install the free search app that gives the best results.
That still leaves Duck Duck Go freezing in the cold because the trash results it yields, if they had an app, no one would install it.
Google's new Pixel phones may be signaling a new direction. Google just may buy HTC outright and start making an Android phone they way they want it to look instead of the hacked over bloated skins the manufacturers impose.
Then they could just hand all the other manufacturers a bare bones Android OS and let them come up with their own bloatware.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.