Google Abusing Market Dominance, Russian Watchdog Says

Advertisement
By Reuters | Updated: 15 September 2015 09:29 IST
Russia's anti-monopoly agency said on Monday Google Inc was abusing its market position in the country and would face penalties, in a case launched by local competitor Yandex.

The FAS anti-monopoly body said Google had violated the law by pre-installing certain applications on mobile devices and could face penalties totalling up to 15 percent of its 2014 revenue in this part of the Russian market.

FAS declined to specify the revenue in question, saying it was a trade secret, but said it would decide on the exact value of the fine after September 28. It added Google must then pay and change its ways, or risk more fines if violations continue.

Google Russia said it would analyse the decision and declined further comment until then.

Advertisement

Shares in Yandex, which rivals Google as Russia's biggest Internet search engine, rose as much as 9 percent before stabilising around 7 percent higher.

Advertisement

Yandex, which filed a complaint against Google with FAS in February, welcomed the decision.

"We believe the FAS decision will serve to restore competition on the market," the company said.

Advertisement

It added the complaint included the practice of bundling applications from the Google Mobile Services with the Google Play store, requiring pre-installation of the Google search engine as the default one, and giving Google application icons preferential placement on the screen of mobile devices.

"In addition, the investigation confirmed the existence of agreements on prohibition of pre-installation of competitors' apps," Yandex said.

Advertisement

Yandex is ahead of Google in Russia but has seen competition stiffen in mobile phones as consumers have adopted Android-based handsets that come pre-loaded with Google products that compete directly with Yandex applications.

Google's total 2014 revenue stood at $66 billion (roughly Rs. 4,37,621 crores). The company's website does not provide a separate revenue figure for Russia, or the exact segment involved in the case.

Analysts at App Annie say Russia was Google's No.4 market in the world in the second quarter of 2015 in terms of Google Play downloads.

The European Union is conducting its own anti-trust case against Google.

© Thomson Reuters 2015

 

Catch the latest from the Consumer Electronics Show on Gadgets 360, at our CES 2026 hub.

Further reading: Antitrust, Google, Internet, Yandex
Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. Flipkart Sale Early Deals: iPhone 17 Price in India Drops Under Rs. 75,000
  2. Samsung Galaxy A07 5G Launched With 6,000mAh Battery: Price, Features
  3. Best Earbuds Under Rs 3,000 in India You Can Buy Right Now
  4. Realme Neo 8 Colour Options, RGB Design Teased Ahead of Launch
  5. Here Are the Top 10 Deals on Smartphones During the Upcoming Amazon Sale
  6. OnePlus Mid-Size Performance Phone With 8,000mAh Battery Could Launch Soon
  7. Google Pixel 10a Launch Timeline, Colourways and Storage Options Leaked
  8. Google's Veo 3.1 Can Now Create Instagram Reels-Style Vertical Videos
  9. Xiaomi 17 Max Battery Capacity, Chipset Details Revealed in New Leak
  10. NoiseFit Pro 6R With Up to Seven Days Battery Life Launched in India
  1. Latest Meta Layoffs 2026: Nearly 1,500 Employees Cut from Reality Labs
  2. Google’s Veo 3.1 AI Model Can Now Generate TikTok, Reels-Style Vertical Videos
  3. Amazon Great Republic Day Sale 2026: Top Deals on Laptops From Asus, Acer, HP, and More
  4. OnePlus Phone With 6.59-Inch Display and 8,000mAh Battery in Development, Tipster Claims
  5. Bitcoin Price Nears Two-Month High as Softer US Inflation Lifts Crypto Sentiment
  6. Google Pixel 10a Launch Timeline Leaked Alongside Colourways, Storage Options
  7. Ubisoft Announces Layoffs at The Division and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Studio, Massive Entertainment
  8. Google to Reportedly Shift Pixel Smartphone Development, Manufacturing Outside of China
  9. Xiaomi 17 Max Tipped to Launch With Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, Larger Battery Than Xiaomi 17 Ultra
  10. Insta360 Link 2 Pro, Link 2C Pro Launched With 4K AI Cameras, Gimbal Tracking and Dual-Mic Audio: Price, Features
Gadgets 360 is available in
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2026. All rights reserved.