Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

Google Reportedly Tried to Settle with the EU in 2017, Considered Changes to Android

posted by martyb on Tuesday July 24 2018, @07:44AM   Printer-friendly
from the who-gets-the-money? dept.

takyon writes:

Google reportedly offered Android changes to EU in 2017

The European Union may have characterized its $5 billion Android antitrust fine as punishment for an intransigent Google, but the practical reality might be different. Bloomberg sources have claimed that Google offered to make changes to its Android policies in August 2017, not long after it received an EU antitrust penalty for its product search practices. Although Google didn't dive into specifics, it had offered to "loosen restrictions" in Android contracts and had considered distributing its apps in "two different ways."

The EU wasn't having it, according to the sources. Officials reportedly said only that a settlement was "no longer an option," and that Google's offer was "too little too late."

Also at Business Insider and BGR.

Previously: EU Fines Google $5 Billion for Android Antitrust Violations

Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Google Reportedly Tried to Settle with the EU in 2017, Considered Changes to Android | Log In/Create an Account | Top | 23 comments | Search Discussion
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.

  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 24 2018, @03:18PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 24 2018, @03:18PM (#711747)

    > both Apple and Microsoft (because of Surface) need to be getting their legal ducks in a row because it seems highly likely they'll be next up for making a contribution to the EU's budget for similar own-brand limitations.

    Unlike Google, Microsoft and Apple make their own devices -- and no-one else does. There are no Samsung iPhones or LG Surfaces. So this...
    > Google's practice of insisting that vendors include a suite of Google's apps as a condition of being able to access the Google store
    ... does not apply.

    Starting Score:    0  points
    Moderation   +1  
       Insightful=1, Total=1
    Extra 'Insightful' Modifier   0  
    Total Score:   1  

  • (Score: 2) by zocalo on Tuesday July 24 2018, @05:37PM

    by zocalo (302) on Tuesday July 24 2018, @05:37PM (#711794)
    That was my point - note the first sentence; the rest is a "what if" should that not be the case. Google contracts someone to manufacture Pixels, same as Apple contracts Foxconn to make iPhones, but it's ultimately their hardware to do with as they please just as Samsung's own-build ones are, so if they want to bundle their own software that shouldn't be a problem for the EU. What I was saying is that if c0lo's Pixel not allowing him to uninstall Google's apps is something the EU *does* have an issue with, then logically they'd have an issue with Apple and Microsoft as well, which - so far at least - doesn't appear to be the case.
    --
    UNIX? They're not even circumcised! Savages!