Dear Europe, Google Isn’t the Enemy

The antitrust suit against the Silicon Valley behemoth is wrongheaded

Europe’s latest fight against Google will surely be long, messy, and kind to lawyers. But it seems unlikely to do much for competition, innovation, or the consumers who benefit from both.

In an antitrust case brought on April 20, the European Commission alleges that Google uses its Android operating system to unfairly privilege its own products on mobile phones. The suit, which could result in a fine of more than $7 billion, joins a pending case filed almost six years ago about Google’s dominance of the search engine market.

Google’s strategy is straightforward: It licenses its Android software to phone makers for free. In return, those companies agree to load Google apps onto their devices. The mobile phone makers are free to choose not to, but then their users won’t have access to popular Google services, such as the Play store.

By and large, this arrangement works pretty well for Google, phone makers, and consumers. By one conventional measure, it’s satisfying all around: Android now powers some threequarters of European smartphones.

The main antitrust complaint is that this setup induces consumers to favor Google apps at the expense of potential competitors. As one regulator put it, Google should instead be letting users “decide for themselves which apps to load.” This would be more persuasive if customers weren’t already deciding for themselves which apps to load, and if it weren’t so easy to find competing products on Android devices. (Remember: Google gives this technology away for free.)

The suit reflects a basic difference between European and American views of antitrust law. In the U.S., the purpose is to protect consumers; in the EU, it’s to protect competitors. Even under this theory, the EU’S lawsuit is a reach. Google’s free services power startups in Europe and around the world. Its eclectic research will surely benefit competitors yet unfounded. <BW>