Overview
- The Court of Justice of the European Union dismissed Google’s final appeal on July 2, 2026, leaving a roughly €4.1 billion antitrust penalty from a 2018 European Commission decision legally final and enforceable.
- Brussels found that Google required device makers who wanted the Google Play Store to pre-install Google Search and Chrome, paid revenue-sharing incentives tied to exclusivity, and restricted manufacturers from shipping alternative “forked” versions of Android, conduct the Commission said foreclosed rivals.
- Google said the judgment ignored its investments in Android and noted it had already changed contracts after the 2018 ruling by adding search-choice screens and unbundling some app licences.
- The ECJ’s decision reinforces how EU courts apply Article 102 to tying and bundling and will shape future competition cases while EU authorities also use the Digital Markets Act to impose proactive rules on big platforms.
- The Android ruling closes an eight-year legal fight in Europe and comes as Google faces other EU probes and fines, a trend that could lead to more litigation by rivals and further regulatory demands on how Google distributes services on phones.