Google charged with breaching EU rules, Apple told to open up to rivals

Alphabet unit Google was hit with two charges of breaching landmark EU rules on Wednesday while Apple was ordered to help rivals connect with its iPhones and iPads, as antitrust regulators continued a crackdown against Big Tech.

The move by the European Commission came amid tensions with US President Donald Trump who has threatened to levy tariffs against countries which impose fines on US companies.

Both Google and Apple have been in the European Commission's crosshairs since March last year over concerns that they may not be complying with the Digital Markets Act, which aims to rein in the power of Big Tech via a list of dos and don'ts.

The Google case centred on whether it restricts app developers from informing users about offers outside its app store Google Play and whether it favours its vertical search services such as Google Flights in Google Search.

The EU competition watchdog on Wednesday issued preliminary findings charging Google of DMA violations in both areas.

The Commission also issued two orders to Apple to open up its ecosystem to rivals, six months after it opened so-called specification proceedings against the iPhone maker.

The first charge in the Google case focused on the company's practices on its app store Google Play. Alphabet technically prevents app developers from freely steering consumers to other channels for better offers, regulators said.

A service fee charged by the company for facilitating the initial acquisition of a new customer by an app developer via Google Play goes beyond what is justified, they added.

In the second charge, regulators said Google favoured its own services such as Google Shopping, Google Hotels and Google Flights over rivals.

Google pushed back, saying that EU competition rules are hurting consumers and businesses.

"The Commission's findings require us to make even more changes to how we show certain types of Search results, which would make it harder for people to find what they are looking for and reduce traffic to European businesses," Oliver Bethell, Google's senior director, Competition, said in a blogpost.

He said if the company can't charge reasonable fees to support the ongoing development of Android and the Play services, then it cannot invest in an open platform.

EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera said in a statement that the measures "ensure that Alphabet abides by EU rules when it comes to two services widely used by businesses and consumers across the EU, Google Search and Android phones."