EU SLAPS GOOGLE WITH RECORD $2.7B FINE...

Google Slapped With $2.7 Billion EU Fine Over Search Results

EU orders Google to treat rival comparison-shopping services equally in its search results 


Google's headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. PHOTO: MARCIO JOSE SANCHEZ/ASSOCIATED PRESS
By   
BRUSSELS—The European Union’s antitrust regulator on Tuesday fined Alphabet Inc.’s GOOGL -2.47% Google a record €2.42 billion ($2.71 billion), saying its search engine stacks the deck in favor of its own comparison-shopping service. The move, which follows more than seven years of investigations, threatens far-reaching ramifications not just for Google, but for the design of products and services from other increasingly dominant tech giants. 
If the ruling sets a precedent that sticks, Google and other large tech firms may have to rethink how they plan to profit from some of their most popular offerings. 
Antitrust experts and tech executives say that question arises in areas where tech giants have introduced major innovations—like Google’s search engine—that become gateways to the internet. EU regulators worry that tech firms, by inserting themselves into such a key role of funneling and directing consumer traffic, could take unfair advantage.

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