Google appeals $4.3B anti-trust penalty to EU's top court

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - Google announced Thursday it has filed an appeal against the €4.1 billion ($4.3 billion) penalty over its Android operating system at the EU's top court.

The US-based tech firm said "there are areas that require legal clarification from the European Court of Justice" as the EU claims Android restricts competition and consumer choice in mobile industry.

"Android has created more choice for everyone, not less, and supports thousands of successful businesses in Europe and around the world," Google said in a statement.

The company earlier appealed to the European Court of Justice’s General Court, which lowered the original €4.34 billion ($4.55 billion) fine – the largest-ever penalty by the European Commission.

The record fine is one of three antitrust lawsuits of the European Commission against Google between 2017 and 2019, which total more than €9 billion ($9.44 billion).

While the 27-nation bloc tries to limit the scope of tech giants, Google claims its Android system paved the way for cheaper mobile devices and applications.