Google Faces Fines of Whopping ₹56,672 Crore in UK Over Market Abuse Allegations

Alphabet's Google is facing a lawsuit in Britain, which could result in damages of up to £5 billion ($6.6 billion or ₹56,672 crore) in a class action claim. The lawsuit, filed at the Competition Appeal Tribunal on Tuesday, alleges that the company has abused its dominant position in the online search market.

The claim contends that Google's practices allowed it to charge higher prices for advertisements appearing in search results than it would in a competitive market. It accuses the US tech giant of striking deals with phone manufacturers to pre-install Google Search and the Chrome browser on Android devices. Additionally, it alleges that Google paid Apple to make it the default search engine on iPhones, all to eliminate competition.

Or Brook, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of thousands of businesses, claims that Google ensured its search engine offered superior functionality and features for its advertising services compared to those of its competitors.

Google's counter

Google said this was “yet another speculative and opportunistic case.” "We will argue against it vigorously," a spokesperson told Reuters. "Consumers and advertisers use Google because it is helpful, not because there are no alternatives."

Brook said businesses had almost no choice but to use Google ads to advertise their products and services. "Regulators around the world have described Google as a monopoly and securing a spot on Google's top pages is essential for visibility," she said in a statement. “Google has been leveraging its dominance in the general search and search advertising market to overcharge advertisers.”

Implications on India

While the lawsuit is jurisdictionally limited to Britain, it can significantly impact Google's business in India. The Competition Commission of India fined Google over ₹1,337 crore in 2022 for similar abuse of market dominance regarding Android. The latest lawsuit in Britain could trigger fresh investigations on Google's business in India, especially around advertising pricing and default service bundling on Android phones. Moreover, Indian developers could demand more transparency and equal access to ad tools and pricing from Google. That could put the company in a tough spot amid escalating pressure in one of its most important markets. 

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