Google reaches out-of-court deal with Russia over Android case

Record ID: 645416

  • Title: Google reaches out-of-court deal with Russia over Android case
  • Date: 17th April 2017
  • Summary: MOSCOW, RUSSIA (APRIL 17, 2017) (REUTERS) RUSSIAN ANTI-MONOPOLY WATCHDOG FAS REPRESENTATIVES BEING SEATED AT NEWS CONFERENCE MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) FAS DEPUTY HEAD, ALEXEI DOTSENKO, SAYING: "Today the court of arbitration has confirmed the (out-of-court) settlement between Russia's FAS and Google, thereby bringing to an end a nearly two year court battle." MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) FAS DEPUTY HEAD, ALEXEI DOTSENKO, SAYING: "Within the framework of the settlement Google will first undertake steps to restore this damage to the competition, secondly we determined several parameters of how it will look in the future, thirdly Google will pay a fine of 438 million rouble ($7.8 million). And fourth, the initial prescription issued by the FAS will be fulfilled." MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) FAS DEPUTY HEAD, ALEXEI DOTSENKO, SAYING: "The validity of the settlement is six years, correct? (REPRESENTATIVE CORRECTING NUMBER) Six years and nine months - my colleague has corrected me." END OF NEWS CONFERENCE
  • Embargoed: 1st May 2017 16:02
  • Keywords: Russia anti-monopoly watchdog Google settlement Android
  • Location: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
  • City: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
  • Country: Russia
  • Topics: Crime/Law/Justice,Judicial Process/Court Cases/Court Decisions
  • Reuters ID: LVA0016CSEXC7
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:Russian anti-monopoly watchdog FAS and Alphabet Inc.'s Google have reached an out-of-court settlement in a dispute over the tech giant's Android operating system, FAS said on Monday (April 17).
    Google will no longer demand exclusivity of its applications on Android-based devices in Russia and will not restrict the pre-installation of rival search engines and other applications, Alexei Dotsenko, FAS deputy head, told reporters.
    As part of the agreement, Google will also develop a tool allowing users to choose a default search engine on their Android devices.
    FAS ruled in 2015 that Google was abusing its dominance by requiring the pre-installation of certain applications on mobile devices using Android, following a complaint by Russia's Yandex which has struggled to grow its share of the mobile search market.
    In August 2016, FAS imposed a 438 million rouble ($7.8 million) fine on Google which the company still has to pay after reaching the settlement, FAS said.
    The deal was approved by a Russian court earlier on Monday, Dotsenko said, adding that it was for a term of six years and nine months.
    Google confirmed the deal, saying it met the interests of all parties.
    Nasdaq-listed shares in Yandex were up around 6 percent in early trade on Monday.
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