Google Loses Major Court Battle
Google was fined $4 billion by the European Union for antitrust violations related to pre-installed proprietary apps on its Android devices.
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Do a cursory search of the words “Google loses” and you will see a number of ways in which the tech behemoth lost many court battles in recent months. On September 14, 2022, Engadget reported that the company lost a recent antitrust ruling in the EU and has been fined more than $4 billion.
Europe’s General Court will not overturn a ruling that the tech giant broke antitrust laws and gave them 4 billion more slaps on the wrist to remind them not to do it again. According to the report, Google had made it mandatory that Android tablets and phones come straight to the consumer with Google’s apps already installed.
This move makes one question Google’s future, however, it doesn’t look to be deterring them much. As Tell Me Best recently reported, the company is working on a secret project which will connect communications between the Earth and space. High-speed networks will allow for comms beyond satellites.
Currently, the tech giant’s main revenue comes from online ads. Perhaps the tech giant is diversifying under its parent company–Alphabet. Many have questioned the move to invest in interstellar communication and believe that the government may be involved as it looks to the future of warfare.
Yes, That Was $4 Billion, With A “B“
In the wake of this newest lawsuit, is the future cloudy for Google? About 80 percent of European smart devices in 2018 were Android. And all of those devices have Google software embedded in them. Will Google go bankrupt? Is that even possible? And what happens if it does.
The Russian arm of Google recently filed for Chapter 11 as it could no longer sustain itself, or its employees, there. However, this move was more than likely politically motivated based on the heels of Russia’s aggressive move into Ukraine.
But that is indeed a lot of money out of the company’s extremely large pockets. However, thankfully, the EU did decide to reduce its original fine by 5 percent. Helpful? Maybe. Google is quoted as saying that although it is disappointed by the ruling, it still believes that the Android devices have created more options and choices in Europe and the free world.
This is a bit of a deflection as Android was not the one on trial here. It’s Google. The same Google that said it is so committed to its employees they would pay for them to move to a different state if they required it for healthcare reasons. Perhaps now, they won’t have the funds.
As time ticks on, as tech companies recover from the bloat they enjoyed pre-pandemic, and as those say companies make moves to lay off its workers, stay tuned to see if Google will follow suit. At the time of writing two months ago, the company was undergoing a hiring freeze. Not uncommon for companies, but for Google… it may be a warning sign.
Google has made the world smaller, giving us knowledge and information at a finger click. The company name has even become a verb; “Go Google that” is synonymous with what libraries were once used for. A world without Google? Go on and Google it.
