Google and ACCC jointly petitioned the Federal Court to approve the fine, avoiding lengthy litigation.
The company pledged to give Android manufacturers more freedom to pre-load browsers and search apps.
Telstra and Optus confirmed full cooperation and vowed not to sign such deals with Google after 2024.
Google has reportedly agreed to pay a $35.8 million fine in Australia after the regulators found the company struck revenue sharing deals with the country’s two biggest telecom operators, Telstra and Optus, to pre-install its search app on Android phones. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) stated that the arrangement in place between late 2019 and early 2021, harmed competition by restricting the exposure of rival search engines.
SurveyFor the unversed, the search giant has already faced regulatory setbacks in Australia. Previously, a court largely sided with Fortnite maker Epic Games in its antitrust case against Google and Apple, which accused both companies of blocking rival app stores on their platforms.
The ACCC claims Google has stopped making such agreements and acknowledged the impact of market competition. “Today’s outcome created the potential for millions of Australians to have greater search choice in the future, and for competing search providers to gain meaningful exposure to Australian consumers,” ACCC Chair Gina-Cass Gottlieb said, according to Reuters.
The report claims that Google and the ACC have jointly petitioned the Federal Court to approve the penalty. According to the regulator, lengthy litigation was avoided because of the company’s cooperation.
According to a Google representative, the company is happy to address the watchdog’s concerns and added that the questions’ provisions haven’t been included in its commercial contracts in a while. Additionally, the company has promised to provide Android device manufacturers with greater freedom to pre-load search apps and browsers.
Telstra and Optus, both owned by Singapore Telecommunications, said they fully cooperated with the investigation and agreed not to enter into such agreements with Google after 2024. Meanwhile, Google’s YouTube was added to an Australian ban on social media platforms that accept users under the age of 16, reversing the video-sharing.
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Ashish Singh
Ashish Singh is the Chief Copy Editor at Digit. He's been wrangling tech jargon since 2020 (Times Internet, Jagran English '22). When not policing commas, he's likely fueling his gadget habit with coffee, strategising his next virtual race, or plotting a road trip to test the latest in-car tech. He speaks fluent Geek. View Full Profile
