Google has lost its final legal challenge on Tuesday against a European Union penalty, concluding a prolonged case that resulted in a substantial fine.
The European Union’s Court of Justice upheld a lower court’s ruling, affirming the €2.4 billion ($2.7 billion) penalty imposed by the European Commission.
The fine was levied for providing an illegal advantage to its own shopping recommendations over competitors in search results.
This decision marks a significant moment in the EU’s ongoing enforcement of antitrust regulations against major tech companies, according to TIME.
“By today’s judgment, the Court of Justice dismisses the appeal and thus upholds the judgment of the General Court,” the court said in a press release summarizing its decision.
Google reportedly didn’t respond immediately to a request for comment.
The European Commission’s original 2017 decision accused Google of unfairly favouring its own Google Shopping service, disadvantaging competitors.
This ruling was part of a broader effort by Brussels to impose multibillion-euro fines on Google over the past decade as it intensified its scrutiny of the tech industry.
To comply with the decision, Google made adjustments, including holding auctions for shopping search listings where it competed alongside other comparison shopping services.
Despite these changes, Google challenged the ruling in court.
However, the E.U. General Court rejected its appeal in 2021, and subsequent recommendations from the Court of Justice’s adviser supported the denial of Google’s further appeal.
European consumer group BEUC hailed the court’s decision, saying it shows how the bloc’s competition law “remains highly relevant” in digital markets.
“Google harmed millions of European consumers by ensuring that rival comparison shopping services were virtually invisible,” director general Agustín Reyna said. “Google’s illegal practices prevented consumers from accessing potentially cheaper prices and useful product information from rival comparison shopping services on all sorts of products, from clothes to washing machines.”
Google continues to appeal two other significant E.U. antitrust penalties related to its Android operating system and AdSense advertising platform.
In 2022, the E.U. General Court upheld a €4.125 billion fine against Google for its Android practices.
The company is also contesting a €1.49 billion fine related to AdSense, with the outcome of this appeal still pending.
These cases reflect broader global regulatory efforts targeting the tech industry.
The E.U. has since expanded its investigations into major tech firms and introduced new regulations aimed at cleaning up social media platforms and overseeing artificial intelligence.
Currently, Google is facing increased scrutiny over its digital advertising business.
A federal antitrust trial began on Monday in the U.S., where the Department of Justice is accusing Google of holding a monopoly in the ad tech sector.
