Despite its lack of success with a 2021 appeal, Google has once again sought to have its $2.6 billion fine overturned by arguing the EU has failed to prove its case. Credit: European Commission Google has once again sought to overturn a €2.4 billion ($2.6 billlion) fine imposed by the European Union in 2017 after it found the company had violated antitrust rules by using its dominant position in the search engine market to illegally promote its comparison shopping service. Google originally appealed the fine the ruling in the General Court — the EU’s lower court — in 2021, but the decision was upheld. The company has now again sought to challenge the fine, this time in Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), arguing that the EU had failed to demonstrate how its practices were anticompetitive. “Companies do not compete by treating competitors equally with themselves,” said Thomas Graf, a lawyer for Google, according to a report by Bloomberg. “The whole point of competition is for a company to differentiate itself from rivals. Not to align with rivals so that all are the same.” CJEU Advocate General Juliane Kokott said she would issue her non-binding opinion on January 11, with the CJEU set to rule in the months following her recommendation. The original 2017 ruling against Google was the first of three penalties handed out to the company for anticompetitive practice in the EU. In total, fines levied against the company have totaled €8.25 billion in the last decade. The other cases for which Google was found to be in breach of EU regulations were related to its Android mobile operating system — in which Google lost an appeal last year — and its AdSense advertising service. As a result of the AdSense case, regulators earlier this year issued a threat that they would try to break up the company if Google did not attempt to regulate its behavior. Google’s ongoing antitrust woes in the US Last week, Google found itself in court on the other side of the pond, defending itself against the first of two major lawsuits brought forward by the US government. In these cases, the government alleges that Google has illegally used its dominance in search to quash competition, to the detriment of the public at large. The case that opened last week is targeted at Google’s search business, with a second trial against the tech giant, focusing on advertising, scheduled for next year. “This case is about the future of the internet, whether the Google search engine will ever face meaningful competition to protect that future,” said Kenneth Dintzer, deputy director in the DOJ’s civil division, during opening arguments last week in the search case. The trial is expected to last 10 weeks. Related content news analysis Apple confirms it will open up the iPad in Europe this fall The latest efforts to comply with Europe’s Digital Markets Act mean developers can offer to side load apps to both iPhones and iPads in the EU. Apple has also taken steps to improve what it offers to smaller and non-commercial developers in the By Jonny Evans May 02, 2024 6 mins iPad Apple Mobile Apps news Udacity offers laid-off US workers free access to its courses for 30 days Sign-ups will be available over the next 30 days By Lucas Mearian May 02, 2024 4 mins Technology Industry IT Jobs IT Skills opinion Why you’ll soon have a digital clone of your own AI isn’t going to replace you at work. You will. By Mike Elgan May 02, 2024 7 mins Augmented Reality Generative AI Virtual Reality news analysis Workers with these AI skills are getting cash premiums As AI deployments become more critical to digital transformation projects, organizations are struggling to find skilled workers to support the new technology, so they're paying premiums for prospective hires or current employees who obtain the n By Lucas Mearian May 01, 2024 7 mins Generative AI IT Jobs IT Skills Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe