Google to Pay AU$55 Million Fine Over Anti-Competitive Search Deals.

Google has agreed to pay a AU$55 million (approximately US$36 million) penalty after admitting to anti-competitive conduct related to deals that ensured its search engine was pre-installed on Android devices sold by two of Australia’s largest telecom companies.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) announced on Monday that it had filed proceedings in the Federal Court, jointly submitting with Google Asia Pacific that the tech giant should pay the fine. The court will now determine whether the proposed penalty and other orders are appropriate.

CBI News gathered that Google reached agreements with Telstra and Optus between December 2019 and March 2021, ensuring only Google Search was pre-installed on Android phones sold by the two companies.

In return, both telcos received a portion of the advertising revenue generated through the search engine.

Google admitted that these arrangements were likely to have “substantially lessened competition,” in breach of Australian competition law.

The ACCC also confirmed that both Telstra and Optus entered into court-enforceable undertakings last year, agreeing not to enter into similar deals in the future that set Google Search as the default on Android devices.