EU court upholds $2.8B fine against Google

A key European court on Wednesday upheld a $2.8 billion antitrust fine against Google, a major decision as the company fights regulators on multiple fronts.

The original 2017 European Commission fine concerned the company promoting its own shopping comparison tool over competitors in search results.

Google has argued that its services help consumers find products they want and assists sellers.

The ruling from the European Union’s General Court in Luxembourg can still be appealed to the bloc’s highest judicial body.

“Shopping ads have always helped people find the products they are looking for quickly and easily, and helped merchants to reach potential customers,” a Google spokesperson told The Hill. “This judgement relates to a very specific set of facts and while we will review it closely, we made changes back in 2017 to comply with the European Commission’s decision.”

The European Union has aggressively pursued Google over antitrust violations over the last few years, hitting the company with billions of dollars in fines.

Regulators across the Atlantic have also been investigating the search giant.

The Justice Department and a coalition of state attorneys general both brought antitrust cases against Google last year, alleging a series of abuses across search and advertising.