EU upholds Google's 4.1B euro fine for bundling search with Android:
Google has lost its latest battle with European Union regulators. This morning, the EU General Court upheld Google's record fine for bundling Google Search and Chrome with Android. The initial ruling was reached in July 2018 with a 4.34 billion euro fine attached, and while that number has been knocked down to 4.125 billion euro ($4.13 billion), it's still the EU's biggest fine ever.
The EU takes issue with the way Google licenses Android and associated Google apps like the Play Store to manufacturers. The Play Store and Google Play Services are needed to build a competitive smartphone, but getting them from Google requires signing a number of contracts that the EU says stifles competition.
The Commission zeroed in on three unlawful restrictions. First, Google bundles Google Chrome and Search with Android. The company requires Android manufacturers to sign a "Mobile Application Distribution Agreement" (MADA) contract, which says that manufacturers that want to include one Google product must include a large collection of them and make Google the default. There are even requirements for where icons and widgets should be placed.
The second unlawful restriction is the contract's "anti-fragmentation agreement," which says that anyone who creates a fork of Android, even as a separate product or under a different brand, will have their company's Google app license instantly revoked. The third issue concerns Google's revenue-sharing agreements, which give manufacturers adhering to all these rules a share of the Google search and Google ad revenue that a customer generates.
The EU Commission found that "the objective of all those restrictions was to protect and strengthen Google's dominant position in relation to general search services and, therefore, the revenue obtained by Google through search advertisements."
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 15 2022, @08:13PM (8 children)
They get a free ride because they are a closed platform?
(Score: 3, Informative) by EJ on Thursday September 15 2022, @08:31PM (5 children)
They make their own phones. They don't tell other manufacturers how to make their own iPhones.
(Score: 2) by r1348 on Thursday September 15 2022, @08:50PM
Exactly: Apple isn't licensing iOS to third parties.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Thursday September 15 2022, @09:00PM (3 children)
Additionally, Apple doesn't prevent the end user from installing alternate browsers, or changing default settings within Safari. Or, for that matter, nothing prevents me removing Safari from the Apple device. I've not investigated de-Appling an Apple device like I've researched de-Googling Android, but, I can tell you that I'm not bound to use any Apple services.
When you look at Android devices, there are a lot of applications and services that are uninstallable without downloading some "hacking" tools.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 4, Informative) by beernutz on Thursday September 15 2022, @09:57PM (2 children)
Really? As far as I was aware, no browsers are allowed on apple devices that use their own engines. Also Android does allow you to install ANY app you like. You are not restricted to just the pre-approved list.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by beernutz on Thursday September 15 2022, @10:01PM (1 child)
Also, how you log into your Apple device without Apple services?
(Score: 2, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Thursday September 15 2022, @10:17PM
I log in with a password. Pretty much the same as Windows, or Linux. If Apple's cloud services were required to log in, I'd be pretty screwed when there is no phone service or WIFI available.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 4, Informative) by corey on Thursday September 15 2022, @11:55PM (1 child)
Sounds to me like the issue here us that Android is bundled with a Google search app/box which is unremovable. That’s Google forcing users to use their other product (search), but correct me if I’m wrong.
Apple do not do this, they don’t have a search box on the desktop. And by default their browser uses Google search but also can be changed.
(Score: 2) by beernutz on Friday September 16 2022, @02:40AM
There are different desktops or "launchers" on android, so you can definitely use/remove the search app/box. Is there an alternate to the "springboard" or whatever apple calls it?