Alphabet Inc.’s Google lashed out at the European Union for doling out a "quasi criminal fine of very large proportions” for allegedly thwarting advertising rivals on websites.
At a hearing at the bloc’s General Court on Monday, the search giant said the 2019 decision by the EU’s antitrust arm to issue the €1.49 billion ($1.6 billion) fine was riddled with errors and should be struck down.
The case is the last in a trilogy of EU court fights over cases that set the course for antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager’s bid to rein in Silicon Valley. It focuses on Google’s role as an ad broker for websites, targeting exclusivity agreements for online ads with its AdSense for Search product. In its decision, the EU accused the company of imposing a number of restrictive clauses in contracts with third-party websites which prevented Google’s rivals from placing their search adverts on these websites.
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