Latest news with #SaikoNakajima
Ammon
17-04-2025
- Business
- Ammon
Japan orders Google to cease alleged antitrust violation
Ammon News - Japanese authorities said Tuesday they had issued a cease-and-desist order to US tech titan Google over an alleged violation of national antitrust is the first time the country has issued such an order to a global technology giant, Japanese media reported, and follows similar moves in Europe and the United States."We have concluded that Google LLC's conduct threatens to impede fair competition," Saiko Nakajima of the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) told reporters on problem is "related to the implementation of search functions for Android smartphones, in violation of the antitrust law", she JFTC accuses Google of imposing binding conditions on Android smartphone manufacturers in Japan since at least July it says Google made sure its online app store Google Play would be installed as part of a package with its web-browser search app Play is so widely used that without it, "Android devices are basically unsellable", a government source told AFP in December. AFP
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.
Express Tribune
15-04-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Japan issues first cease-and-desist order against Google over antitrust violations
Japan has issued its first-ever cease-and-desist order against Google, accusing the tech giant of violating the country's anti-monopoly law by coercing smartphone manufacturers to preinstall its apps. The landmark action by the Japan Fair Trade Commission signals growing global scrutiny of major tech firms. The Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) announced on Tuesday that Google breached competition laws by requiring Android smartphone makers to preinstall Google Play and Google Chrome on home screens in prominent positions, effectively disadvantaging rival search engine applications. Saiko Nakajima, senior investigator for digital platforms at the JFTC, said the company's contracts restricted fair competition in the search engine market. 'Google's conduct has created a risk of impeding fair competition,' she said. Since at least July 2020, Google allegedly entered into agreements with manufacturers covering around 80% of Android smartphones in Japan. The contracts reportedly included clauses that rewarded manufacturers with a share of advertising revenue, provided they set Google Chrome as the default browser and refrained from installing competitor apps. The JFTC's cease-and-desist order directs Google to end such practices immediately and bars it from requesting app preinstallation in future contracts. Google must also develop internal compliance guidelines aligned with Japan's antitrust rules. The ruling marks the first time Japan has taken formal action against a company within the GAFAM group—Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft—over antitrust concerns. Failure to comply could subject Google to financial penalties. The move aligns Japan with the United States and European Union, which have taken similar steps against large tech firms accused of abusing market dominance. With this decision, Japanese regulators aim to foster increased competition in the country's digital ecosystem.
Iraqi News
15-04-2025
- Business
- Iraqi News
Japan orders Google to cease alleged antitrust violation
Tokyo – Japanese authorities said Tuesday they had issued a cease-and-desist order to US tech titan Google over an alleged violation of national antitrust laws. It is the first time the country has issued such an order to a global technology giant, Japanese media reported, and follows similar moves in Europe and the United States. 'We have concluded that Google LLC's conduct threatens to impede fair competition,' Saiko Nakajima of the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) told reporters on Tuesday. The problem is 'related to the implementation of search functions for Android smartphones, in violation of the antitrust law', she said. The JFTC accuses Google of imposing binding conditions on Android smartphone manufacturers in Japan since at least July 2020. Specifically, it says Google made sure its online app store Google Play would be installed as part of a package with its web-browser search app Chrome. Google Play is so widely used that without it, 'Android devices are basically unsellable', a government source told AFP in December. No financial penalties were announced Tuesday, but Nakajima said the order would increase the options available to smartphone makers. 'This will encourage competition and benefit' society, she said. Google Japan said it was 'disappointed' by the JFTC's findings. '(Our) agreements with Japanese partners help to promote competition and have undeniably boosted their ability to invest in product innovations which deliver more choice for consumers,' it said in a statement. 'We will review the order thoroughly to determine our next steps.' The US government asked a judge in November to order the dismantling of Google by selling its widely used Chrome browser, in a major antitrust crackdown on the company. And the European Commission said in 2023 that Google should sell parts of its business and could face a fine of up to 10 percent of its global revenue if it fails to comply. In Japan, the JFTC conducted an on-site inspection of Amazon's Japanese subsidiary in Tokyo last year, accusing it of abusing its industry dominance to drive down prices. Amazon Japan used its coveted 'buy box' — a prominent spot on its website — against sellers, pressuring them into lowering prices to give it a competitive edge over rival e-commerce sites, the JFTC said.
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.
