Google agreed on Monday to pay a A$55 million ($35.8 million) fine in Australia after the consumer watchdog found it had harmed competition by paying the country’s two largest telcos to pre-install its search application on Android phones, excluding rival search engines.
The fine adds to a turbulent period for the Alphabet-owned internet giant in Australia. Just last week, a court largely ruled against Google in a lawsuit filed by Fortnite maker Epic Games, which accused Google and Apple of blocking rival app stores on their operating systems.
Google’s YouTube was also added last month to Australia’s ban on social media platforms admitting users under 16, overturning an earlier decision to exempt the video-sharing service.
On Monday, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) said Google struck deals with Telstra and Optus under which the tech giant shared advertising revenue generated from Google Search on Android devices between late 2019 and early 2021.
Google admitted the arrangement had a substantial impact on competition from rival search engines and has since stopped signing such agreements. It also agreed to pay the fine, the ACCC added.
“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.
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The ACCC and Google jointly submitted to the Federal Court that the company should pay the A$55 million penalty. The court must still decide whether the fine is appropriate, but the regulator noted that Google’s cooperation had helped avoid lengthy litigation.
A Google spokesperson said the company was pleased to resolve the regulator’s concerns, which involved “provisions that haven’t been in our commercial agreements for some time.”
“We are committed to providing Android device makers more flexibility to pre-load browsers and search apps, while preserving the offerings and features that help them innovate, compete with Apple, and keep costs low,” the spokesperson added.
Telstra referred Reuters to an earlier statement saying it and Optus, owned by Singapore Telecommunications, had fully cooperated with the ACCC and had not signed agreements with Google to pre-install its search product since 2024.
