The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has dismissed Google’s final appeal against a €4.1 billion ($4.7 billion) antitrust fine, bringing a definitive end to a case that originated with a European Commission decision in 2018. The Commission found that Google abused its dominant market position by using Android licensing agreements to entrench its own products at the expense of rivals.

What the Commission Originally Found

The 2018 decision identified three specific practices that regulators deemed anti-competitive:

  • Requiring device manufacturers to pre-install Google Search and Chrome as a condition of receiving a Play Store license.
  • Requiring manufacturers to refrain from selling devices running unapproved Android versions, enforced through anti-fragmentation agreements.
  • Offering revenue-sharing agreements contingent on the exclusive pre-installation of Google Search.

How the Fine Was Adjusted

In 2022, the General Court partially annulled the Commission’s findings related to certain revenue-sharing agreements, trimming the original fine from €4.34 billion to €4.125 billion while upholding the core of the ruling. Google subsequently appealed to the CJEU, which has now affirmed the lower court’s judgment.

The CJEU concluded that the General Court correctly assessed the anti-competitive effects of the Android agreements, was not obligated to conduct a counterfactual analysis in every instance to establish abuse of dominance, and properly found that pre-installation and anti-fragmentation agreements both restricted competition and reinforced Google’s dominant position.

Google’s Position

In a statement shared with the media, a Google spokesperson argued that Android remains an open, interoperable, and free platform that supports thousands of businesses and promotes consumer choice. The company contended that the ruling does not reflect current market realities and that the original Commission decision was rooted in past conditions.

Google noted that it revised its contractual practices following the 2018 decision, introduced additional user-choice mechanisms in 2021, and implemented more than 20 product changes after the Digital Markets Act took effect in 2024, including expanded choice screens. The company also argued that regulators underestimated the competitive pressure exerted by Apple’s iOS, which Google considers Android’s primary rival for both consumers and developers.

Significance for the Industry

The ruling represents the final word on one of the largest antitrust penalties ever levied against a technology company in Europe. For security and compliance professionals, the case underscores how platform-level agreements, including pre-installation mandates and anti-fragmentation controls, can draw sustained regulatory scrutiny even when framed as ecosystem management tools.