Google Humiliated! Losing In European Union Court, IDR 1.7 Trillion Fine Irresistible!

Android Auto illustration from Google (photo: x @Googlelizados)

JAKARTA - The European Union's highest court ruled that Google's refusal, a subsidiary of Alphabet, to allow Enel's e-mobility app on the Android Auto platform could be considered a abuse of market power. This decision supports Italy's business competition authorities, which previously fined the tech giant.

This case began in 2021, when Italian antitrust authorities fined Google 102 million euros (approximately IDR 1.7 trillion) for blocking Enel's JuicePass app from Android Auto. This app allows drivers to access navigation services and send messages via their car dashboard screens.

Google rejected Enel's request for security reasons and the absence of a special template for the application category. The company then appealed to the Italian State Council, which then requested directions from the Luxembourg-based European Union Court (CJEU).

Despite Google having resolved this issue, court decisions still set a precedent for other dominant companies in similar cases in the future.

Final Decision And Implication

CJEU judges insist that "the rejection by the dominant company to ensure its platform's interoperability with other potentially more attractive applications can be considered an act that abuses market power."

However, the court also stated that the company could justify their refusal if there were no appropriate templates for the intended application category, or if it allowed interoperability could jeopardize the security and integrity of the platform. If these reasons do not apply, the dominant company must develop appropriate templates within a reasonable period of time.

Google stated that it had launched the features requested by Enel, but by the time the request was submitted, the feature was only relevant to 0.04% of vehicles in Italy.

"We prioritize the development of features that drivers need the most because we believe innovation should be driven by user demand, not by specific company requests," said a Google spokesperson.

CJEU's decision is final and cannot be appealed. Furthermore, the Italian State Council will give the final decision against Google's appeal based on the decision of the European Union court.