Google Faces New EU Complaint Over Android

A group of Google adversaries announced a new formal complaint to the European Union’s antitrust watchdog over the Alphabet unit’s behavior with its Android mobile-operating service. The Open Internet Project, whose members include German publishing giants Axel Springer SE and Hubert Burda Media, as well as a handful of French internet companies, said it had filed a new complaint to the EU against Google because the technology giant had “imposed contractual restraints on manufacturers of Android smartphones and tablets, which make it virtually impossible for them to produce and market Google-free devices.”

The European Commission, the bloc’s antitrust watchdog, last April accused Google of using its Android mobile-operating system, which runs more than 80% of the world’s smartphones, to strong-arm phone makers and telecom companies into favoring Google’s search engine and browser on their devices. The latest complaint increases pressure on Google, as well as the regulator, to complete the various investigations into the company. In addition, the EU has formally accused Google of skewing its online search results to favor its comparison-shopping service and alleged the company violates the bloc’s rules by restricting how websites offering Google’s search function can show advertisements from other companies.