Google has agreed to pay a $36M fine for anticompetitive conduct linked to deals with Australian telecom giants Telstra and Optus, the country’s competition regulator, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), announced.
From December 2019 to March 2021, the agreements required Google Search to be exclusively pre-installed on Android devices sold by the carriers, blocking other search engines. In return, Telstra and Optus received a share of Google’s ad revenue. Google admitted the deals likely reduced competition and is cooperating with the ACCC, which will ask a court to approve the fine.
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