Mon Oct 28 14:59:23 UTC 2024: ## Google Fined Billions for Suppressing Small Website: TNILIVE News

**London, UK:** In a landmark ruling, the European Court of Justice upheld a previous decision that Google must pay a hefty €2.4 billion (approximately ₹26,000 crores) fine for abusing its market dominance to suppress smaller competitor websites.

The case centered around “Foundem,” a price comparison website founded by a UK couple, Shiv and Adam Rif, in 2006. After launching, Foundem’s visibility on Google search dramatically plummeted, despite using relevant keywords like “price comparison” and “shopping.”

The couple discovered that their website was penalized by Google’s automated spam filters, causing their ranking to plummet and significantly impacting their revenue. Despite contacting Google and presenting evidence of the technical issue, the penalty remained for almost two years, forcing them to file a complaint with the European Commission.

Following a lengthy investigation, the Commission found that Google unfairly disadvantaged companies like Foundem to promote its own shopping service. The ruling condemned Google’s misuse of its market dominance and imposed the hefty fine in 2017.

While Google appealed the decision, the court ultimately upheld the ruling, rejecting Google’s appeal after a seven-year legal battle. The Rif couple, who were forced to shut down Foundem in 2016, expressed relief at the ruling but lamented the delay, as their civil damages claim won’t be heard until 2026.

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