The European Union’s antitrust chief, Margrethe Vestager, has secured significant victories in two landmark cases against Apple and Google, marking major steps in the EU’s efforts to regulate Big Tech. On Tuesday, Europe’s top court, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), upheld Vestager’s previous decisions regarding Apple’s tax arrangements in Ireland and Google’s anticompetitive practices.
Apple’s Tax Deal Overturned
The court confirmed the European Commission’s 2016 decision that Apple had benefited from unlawful state aid through tax rulings from Ireland, resulting in the tech giant receiving an artificially low tax rate as low as 0.005% in 2014. The judgment requires Apple to pay back €13 billion ($14.4 billion) in taxes to Ireland.
Apple responded with disappointment, arguing that the ruling ignored international tax laws and that their income was already taxed in the U.S. The company also anticipates a one-time income tax charge of up to $10 billion by the end of its fiscal quarter.
Ireland, which also contested the ruling, has historically attracted multinational companies like Apple with its low corporate tax rate of 12.5%. However, global pressure and reforms have seen Ireland shift its stance, cooperating in international efforts to overhaul corporate tax rules.
Google Fined for Anticompetitive Practices
In a separate case, the court upheld a €2.42 billion ($2.67 billion) fine against Google for anticompetitive practices. The fine, first imposed in 2017, penalized Google for favoring its own price comparison shopping service over smaller European competitors. This was the first of three major antitrust penalties against Google, with additional fines for practices involving its Android mobile operating system and AdSense advertising service.
Google expressed disappointment, noting that it had made changes in 2017 to comply with the EU’s decision, and is now waiting on rulings in the other antitrust cases. Google has accumulated over €8.25 billion ($9.11 billion) in EU antitrust fines over the past decade and is also battling new EU charges that may force it to divest part of its ad tech business.
Both of these rulings are final and cannot be appealed, cementing the EU’s strong stance against the monopolistic practices of Big Tech companies. These decisions highlight the EU’s commitment to ensuring fair competition and tax practices in the digital economy.
