Japanese authorities will issue a cease and desist order to Google over an alleged antitrust violation, the first such action taken against a U.S. tech giant. a government source said on Monday.
The Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) accuses Google of breaking the law by imposing “transactions with binding conditions” to Android smartphone manufacturers in Japan.
Specifically, she claims that Google made its Google Play online app store installed as part of a package with its Chrome browser.
Google Play is used so much that without it, “Android devices are virtually unsaleable”declared this source to AFP.
The JFTC also believes that Google has dangled financial incentives to push these smartphone manufacturers to exclude competing search applications, according to this source who declined to be identified because the information is not yet public.
It is about “unfair commercial practices” prohibited by antitrust law, she continued, adding that a cease and desist letter would be sent to Google pending a hearing.
This administrative action is a measure “quite strong”said the source, and the first against GAFAM – the American technology giants Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Microsoft.
Contacted by AFP, Google Japan did not wish to react immediately.
Last month, the JFTC carried out an inspection of Amazon's Japanese subsidiary in Tokyo, accusing it of abusing its dominant position in the sector to lower prices.
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