Japan is opening an antitrust investigation into Google. The company is accused of pressuring smartphone manufacturers to install the Google search engine.
According to Japan, Google abused its dominant position in the smartphone market. After all, the company offers several important, or even indispensable, apps for an Android device. Smartphone manufacturers were allegedly pressured to install the Google search bar by default in a location determined by Google. If they did not comply with this request, Google would block access to Google Play.
It doesn’t stop there, according to the suit. The company is further accused of sharing profits from advertising revenue with manufacturers who ship their smartphones without pre-installing competing search engines.
A spokesperson for the company told SiliconAngle it is challenging the allegations. “We have continued to work closely with the Japanese government to show how we support the Android ecosystem and expand user choice in Japan,” a spokesperson said. “We will present our arguments at the hearing.”
Allegations likely to hold up
According to Google, solutions have already been offered to the government. The company does not say what solutions are involved. In a U.S. lawsuit, the company offers more transparency. The higher stakes will most likely be the reason for this. Indeed, it has already been officially pronounced that Google holds an illegal monopoly on its search engine and related ads. America is pushing for a breakup of the search engine from Google’s other operations.
In the lawsuit that Japan is now filing, there may be financial consequences for a violation. There is a good chance this fine will follow, as Google was embroiled in a similar lawsuit with the European Commission in 2018. In the end, the company had to pay up a €4.3 billion fine for abusing its monopoly position on Android.
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