Google’s Android operating system has boosted competition rather than stifling it, the United States tech firm said on Thursday (10 November), as it formally answered European Commission antitrust charges.
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A blog post by Google general counsel Kent Walker spelled out three key points that he believes the EC has got wrong, and concluded by saying that the argument could have serious consequences for open source software and the future of smartphones.
In Google’s ideal world, it would seem, all Android devices with fast-charging would support a standard like USB Type-C and make it easy for us to employ the feature on any device we pick up. The European Commission antitrust complaint alleges that hurts the chances of alternative apps and services, a charge the company dismisses.
The EU accuses Google of abusing that dominance to force phone makers into favoring the Google search engine and Chrome browser on their devices.
The Commission is more anxious about how Google handles the distribution of its Play Store – a portal to the Android app world. To not offer it to customers running Android devices puts undue pressure on customers to buy adapters, which ultimately pushes up the total cost of owning a device. He said that the EU’s approach risks upsetting a delicate balance between user, developers and manufacturers and could “send an unintended signal favouring closed over open platforms”. This is crucial because as a Google engineer found, cheap USB-C cables could fry your laptop or phone. Or phone makers. Or developers. Walker added that consumers could “swipe away” any of the apps at any time.
Distributing products like Google Search together with Google Play permits us to offer our entire suite for free – as opposed to, for example, charging upfront licensing fees.
Google has also started implementing an updated user interface for the Google Play Store, with a revamped main page and a larger install button for apps, among many other changes.
Moreover Google’s Android is accounted for more 90% of market share in Europe, according to the European Commission. The EU wants to prevent the company from pressuring smartphone makers if it prevents them from offering competing operating systems based on Android.
Another issued tackled by Google in its response to the Commission is fragmentation.
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FairSearch, a lobby group against Google’s dominant position in the online search market, said “it was time to end Google’s abuse of its Android monopoly” and called on the commission to find the United States company liable.
