It is a popular adage that spare the rod, spoil the child. I remember those days when I got energetically whipped by my father like God instructed him specifically to flog me so he could sit on His right hand in heaven. And now Google is getting the disciplinary whip in Russia. For some time now, Google has been on stitches as it is being whipped all around Europe in some passion of Google movie.
This time around Google has been whipped with a $6.75 million antitrust fine in Russia. The offence as it is said is that Google is demanding phone manufacturers to perform pre-installation of its apps on Android mobile devices. A larger fraction of smartphones and tablets which were sold in Russia had an Android operating system. This got domestic search engine rival Yandex filing a complaint back in 2015 that the US company was illegitimately exploiting its position. Although a fine of $6.75 million for a tech giant like Google is like flogging a crocodile with a broomstick. It is relatively small; even smaller than what the company earns in sixty minutes — but then decision is a sound indication of the rising enmity to Google all around Europe.
Of the many antitrust complaints currently being slapped against Google by the EU,many have their root in the same concern; the accusation that the company is exploiting or abusing its giant market share or leading position in the market by forcefully demanding manufacturers to make pre-installation of its services on Android devices.
Though quite different the rest of Europe, Russia has a very solid competitor to Google in the form of Yandex. The latter boasts close to 60% of the search market in Russia. Although with more users tilting towards mobile, the company is right to be nervous worried it’s being cunningly out-worked by Google for the future of search.
