Latest news with #Gina-CassGottlieb
Hindustan Times
12 hours ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Google agrees to $36 million fine over Android search deals
Google has agreed to pay a Aus$55 million (US$36 million) penalty for striking "anti-competitive" deals to pre-install only its own search engine on Android mobile phones sold by two leading Australian telecoms firms. Australia's competition authority said it had launched proceedings in the Federal Court and jointly submitted with Google Asia Pacific that it should pay the fine. The court would now decide whether the agreed penalty and other orders were "appropriate", the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said in a statement released on Monday. Also read Looking for a smartphone? To check mobile finder click here. "Conduct that restricts competition is illegal in Australia because it usually means less choice, higher costs or worse service for consumers," said the commission's chair, Gina-Cass Gottlieb. Google had cooperated with the competition commission and admitted reaching the deals with telecoms firms Telstra and Optus, which were in place from December 2019 to March 2021, the body said. In return for only installing Google's search engine, Telstra and Optus had received a share of the resulting advertising revenue, the commission said. "Google has admitted in reaching those understandings with each of Telstra and Optus it was likely to have had the effect of substantially lessening competition," it said. Google said it was pleased to have resolved the regulator's concerns over the provisions, adding that they had not been in its commercial agreements for "some time". "We are committed to providing Android device makers more flexibility to preload browsers and search apps," a Google spokesperson said. Telstra and Optus entered court-enforceable agreements last year not to make new agreements to pre-install Google search as the default on Android devices, the competition watchdog said.
Canada News.Net
15 hours ago
- Business
- Canada News.Net
Australia fines Google $36 million for Telstra, Optus pre-install deals
SYDNEY, Australia: Google has agreed to pay a A$55 million (US$35.8 million) fine in Australia after regulators found it stifled competition by paying Telstra and Optus to pre-install Google Search on Android devices, shutting out rival search engines. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said the deals, in place between late 2019 and early 2021, included revenue-sharing arrangements from advertising generated on Android phones. Google acknowledged the agreements had a significant impact on competition and confirmed it had stopped entering such contracts. "Today's outcome … created the potential for millions of Australians to have greater search choice in the future, and for competing search providers to gain meaningful exposure to Australian consumers," said ACCC Chair Gina-Cass Gottlieb. Google and the ACCC jointly recommended the fine to the Federal Court, which must still approve the penalty. The regulator said Google's cooperation helped avoid drawn-out litigation. A Google spokesperson said the company was "pleased to resolve the ACCC's concerns" and noted the provisions in question have not been part of its commercial agreements for some time. Google added that it is committed to giving Android phone makers more flexibility in pre-loading browsers and search apps, while also preserving features that help them compete with Apple and keep costs down. The fine is the latest in a series of setbacks for Alphabet in Australia. Just last week, a court mostly ruled against Google in Epic Games' lawsuit alleging that Google and Apple blocked rival app stores on their operating systems. And in July, YouTube was added to an Australian ban on social media use by children under 16, reversing an earlier exemption for the platform. Telstra and Optus, owned by Singapore Telecommunications, said they had fully cooperated with the ACCC and have not signed agreements with Google to pre-install its search app since 2024.
NDTV
a day ago
- Business
- NDTV
Google Fined $36 Million Over Anti-Competitive Deals With Australia Telcos
Google has agreed to pay an Aus $55 million (US $36 million) penalty for striking "anti-competitive" deals to pre-install only its own search engine on Android mobile phones sold by two leading Australian telecoms firms. Australia's competition authority said it had launched proceedings in the Federal Court and jointly submitted with Google Asia Pacific that it should pay the fine. The court would now decide whether the agreed penalty and other orders were "appropriate", the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said in a statement released on Monday. "Conduct that restricts competition is illegal in Australia because it usually means less choice, higher costs or worse service for consumers," said the commission's chair, Gina-Cass Gottlieb. Google had cooperated with the competition commission and admitted reaching the deals with telecoms firms Telstra and Optus, which were in place from December 2019 to March 2021, the body said. In return for only installing Google's search engine, Telstra and Optus had received a share of the resulting advertising revenue, the commission said. "Google has admitted in reaching those understandings with each of Telstra and Optus, it was likely to have had the effect of substantially lessening competition," it said. Google said it was pleased to have resolved the regulator's concerns over the provisions, adding that they had not been in its commercial agreements for "some time". "We are committed to providing Android device makers more flexibility to preload browsers and search apps," a Google spokesperson said. Telstra and Optus entered court-enforceable agreements last year not to make new agreements to pre-install Google search as the default on Android devices, the competition watchdog said.
Qatar Tribune
a day ago
- Business
- Qatar Tribune
Google agrees to $36 million fine over Android search deals
Agencies Google has agreed to pay a Aus$55 million (US$36 million) penalty for striking 'anti-competitive' deals to pre-install only its own search engine on Android mobile phones sold by two leading Australian telecoms firms. Australia's competition authority said it had launched proceedings in the Federal Court and jointly submitted with Google Asia Pacific that it should pay the fine. The court would now decide whether the agreed penalty and other orders were 'appropriate', the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said in a statement released on Monday. 'Conduct that restricts competition is illegal in Australia because it usually means less choice, higher costs or worse service for consumers,' said the commission's chair, Gina-Cass Gottlieb. Google had cooperated with the competition commission and admitted reaching the deals with telecoms firms Telstra and Optus, which were in place from December 2019 to March 2021, the body said. In return for only installing Google's search engine, Telstra and Optus had received a share of the resulting advertising revenue, the commission said. 'Google has admitted in reaching those understandings with each of Telstra and Optus it was likely to have had the effect of substantially lessening competition,' it said. Google said it was pleased to have resolved the regulator's concerns over the provisions, adding that they had not been in its commercial agreements for 'some time'. 'We are committed to providing Android device makers more flexibility to preload browsers and search apps,' a Google spokesperson said.
Japan Today
a day ago
- Business
- Japan Today
Google agrees to $36 mil fine in Australia over Android search deals
Google has agreed to pay a Aus$55 million (U.S.$36 million) penalty for striking "anti-competitive" deals to pre-install only its own search engine on Android mobile phones sold by two leading Australian telecoms firms. Australia's competition authority said it had launched proceedings in the Federal Court and jointly submitted with Google Asia Pacific that it should pay the fine. The court would now decide whether the agreed penalty and other orders were "appropriate", the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said in a statement released on Monday. "Conduct that restricts competition is illegal in Australia because it usually means less choice, higher costs or worse service for consumers," said the commission's chair, Gina-Cass Gottlieb. Google had cooperated with the competition commission and admitted reaching the deals with telecoms firms Telstra and Optus, which were in place from December 2019 to March 2021, the body said. In return for only installing Google's search engine, Telstra and Optus had received a share of the resulting advertising revenue, the commission said. "Google has admitted in reaching those understandings with each of Telstra and Optus it was likely to have had the effect of substantially lessening competition," it said. Google said it was pleased to have resolved the regulator's concerns over the provisions, adding that they had not been in its commercial agreements for "some time". "We are committed to providing Android device makers more flexibility to preload browsers and search apps," a Google spokesperson said. Telstra and Optus entered court-enforceable agreements last year not to make new agreements to pre-install Google search as the default on Android devices, the competition watchdog said. © 2025 AFP
