Latest news with #AntimonopolyAct
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Japan's FTC issues cease-and-desist over Google's Android pre-install deals
April 15 (UPI) -- The Japanese Fair Trade Commission on Tuesday issued Google a cease-and-desist order for violating anti-monopoly law by allegedly striking deals with Android manufacturers to preinstall Google apps. "By binding smartphone manufacturers and telecommunication carriers, Google has made it difficult for other competing search engine applications to be used on Android phones," stated Saiko Nakajima, a JFTC senior investigator for digital platform operators. It's the first time Japan has ever issued such an order on any major U.S.-based tech giant like like Google with its other contemporaries like Apple, Meta, Amazon or Microsoft. According to Japan's FTC, Google allegedly struck deals with at least six Android smartphone manufacturers that produce about 80% of Android's in Japan to install Google Play and Google Chrome apps and put them in home screen locations easy for users to access. In addition, it was found in the investigation starting October 2023 that Google paid advertising revenue to Android makers as part of its contract deals. "In the process of this investigation, the JFTC exchanged information with overseas competition authorities that investigated Google LLC's act similar to this case," the commission's cease-and-desist order states. The commission says this took place at least from July 2020 to the present day. "Google's conduct in this case has created a risk of impeding fair competition concerning transactions -- thus, we have determined that this is an act in violation of the Antimonopoly Act," added the JFTC's Nakajima. The Japanese authority's cease-and-desist order bars Google from asking companies to preinstall its apps, calls for a compiling of guidelines for compliance action and instructs the global tech leader to stop committing acts in violation of Japanese anti-monopoly laws. The commission previously said Google already owns about a 90% share of the search market. JFTC officials hope it will encourage greater competition in Japan's search engine market for its more than 123 million citizens. Google is liable to a fine if it does not adhere to the order. In August, U.S. District Court Judge Amit Mehta called Google a "monopolist" in a similar ruling, saying it "has acted as one to maintain its monopoly." Meanwhile, the order comes as a Japanese delegation led my Economy Minister Ryosei Akazawa is set to visit Washington to talk over U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping global tariffs.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Japan Targets Google Over Alleged Search Monopoly on Android Devices
Japan's Fair Trade Commission has ordered Google, a unit of Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG), to cease certain business practices deemed anticompetitive under the nation's Antimonopoly Act. The watchdog announced the order on Tuesday, stating that Google breached regulations tied to unfair trade behavior. The agency initially opened its investigation on October 23, 2023, and noted it coordinated with foreign regulators conducting similar probes into the company. At the core of the inquiry was Google's arrangement with Android smartphone manufacturers. The company allegedly mandated that its search engine be given priority placement on mobile devices. This included requirements to preinstall Google Search and Chrome, along with placing their icons on the default home screen. Manufacturers were reportedly also restricted from altering Chrome's default search settings. Additionally, the commission alleged Google provided financial incentives to manufacturers, offering ad revenue shares in return for not preloading competing search services. These agreements were said to ensure Google maintained dominance across general search functionalities. Google has not yet commented publicly on the matter. This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
Japan Times
15-04-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
In first, Japan issues cease-and-desist order against Google
In an unprecedented move, the Japan Fair Trade Commission on Tuesday issued a cease-and-desist order against Google for violating the country's anti-monopoly law by forcing manufacturers to preinstall the company's apps on their Android smartphones. This is the first time that Japan has issued such an order against any of the major U.S. technology companies referred to collectively as GAFAM — Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft. 'By binding smartphone manufacturers and telecommunication carriers, Google has made it difficult for other competing search engine applications to be used on Android phones,' Saiko Nakajima, a senior investigator for digital platform operators at the commission, said. 'Google's conduct in this case has created a risk of impeding fair competition concerning transactions — thus, we have determined that this is an act in violation of the Antimonopoly Act,' she added. According to the commission, Google had — since July 2020 at the latest — forced Android smartphone manufacturers to install Google Play and Google Chrome apps on their phones and place them in a location on the home screen that is easy for users to access. With this, the company had unfairly restricted competition from other search engine apps, thus violating the anti-monopoly law. Google was also found to have paid portions of its advertising revenue to manufacturers as part of its contracts with them, as long as they fulfilled conditions it prescribed, such as setting Google's Chrome as the default browser and not preinstalling other search engine apps. As of December last year, Google had such agreements with at least six manufacturers that produced around 80% of all Android smartphones used in Japan, the commission said. The cease-and-desist order instructs Google to stop committing acts that violate the anti-monopoly law, bars it from asking manufacturers to preinstall its apps. It also instructs the company to compile action guidelines for compliance with the law. With the move, the commission hopes to encourage more competition in the search engine market. If Google does not adhere to the order, it would be liable to a fine. Japan joins a list of countries — notably the U.S. and Europe — that in recent years have been cracking down on major tech companies for breaches of anti-monopoly laws.
