Google’s $2.7B Fine Could Be Only the Start as EU Probes AdSense and Android
Google could see more fines from European Union antitrust regulators this year as probes into its AdSense advertising service and Android mobile-phone software near completion end, three people familiar with the cases said just a week after the company was hit with a record penalty for its shopping-search services.
Both are at advanced stages, though the Android case may not be concluded until later this year, according to one of the people, who all spoke on condition of anonymity.
Alphabet Inc.’s Google is the EU’s highest-profile antitrust target, with probes on three fronts occupying regulators for as long as seven years. EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager has called 2017 her “G year” during which she would seek to nail decisions against the search-engine giant. European politicians have urged the EU to sanction Google or even break it up while U.S. critics claim regulators are unfairly targeting successful American firms.
