European Union: Google appeals fine of EUR 4.34 billion for abuse of dominance regarding its search engine

On 9 October 2018, Google appealed the EUR 4.34 billion fine it was handed by the European Commission for violations of EU antitrust rules at the General Court of the EU. Specifically, Google was charged with abusing its market dominance in the search engine market by restricting Android device manufacturers and mobile network operators in an effort to strengthen its dominant position in the search engine market. Part of the EC's ruling was a stipulation that Google had to cease its anticompetitive practices until October 28 2018 or face additional penalties. The now-filed appeal does not affect these obligations. Google ensured compliance with the ruling by implementing several changes following the ruling, such as giving European Android users a choice of search engine and browser, as well as charging app developers for the pre-instalment of apps.