Google To Pay A$36 Million Fine In Australia Over Anticompetitive Deals

Google has agreed to pay a $35.8 million fine—55 million Australian dollars—in Australia on Monday after the country’s consumer watchdog found the tech giant had harmed competition through its deals with local telecommunications companies.

According to the official press release, Australia’s Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) accused Google of anti-competitive business practices, including deals with Telstra—Australia’s largest telecommunications and tech services provider—, and Optus—the second largest—to pre-install Google Search on Android mobile phones.

“The understandings, which were in place between December 2019 and March 2021, required Telstra and Optus to only pre-install Google Search on Android phones they sold to consumers, and not other search engines,” explained the agency. “In return, Telstra and Optus received a share of the revenue Google generated from ads displayed to consumers when they used Google Search on their Android phones.”

Google acknowledged the anti-competitive practices and agreed to pay the fine. The company also committed to avoiding similar arrangements and to removing the mandatory pre-installation of the Google Search app on mobile devices.

According to Reuters, Google said that it’s pleased to resolve concerns and collaborate with the ACCC. The arrangements with the telecommunications companies have been in place since 2017.

“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,” said a spokesperson from Google.

The court has yet to determine whether the proposed fine and agreement between the parties are appropriate.

Google is also facing antitrust challenges in other jurisdictions. In the European Union, regulators are investigating its AI Overview tool, while in the United Kingdom, the antitrust watchdog recently announced stricter measures to assess Google’s dominance in search services. Since 2024, the tech company has also been in a legal antitrust battle with the U.S. Department of Justice.