US President Donald Trump has given a strong warning to the European Union (EU). Trump said that after imposing a fine of $ 1 billion on Google, Europe will have to pay a “very heavy price”. He indicated that the US could impose new tariffs on European countries and also initiate new trade investigations against them.
In fact, the European Commission on Thursday imposed a fine of about $ 1 billion on Google. The Commission says that Google has violated the Digital Markets Act (DMA). It is alleged that Google gives more priority to its own shopping, travel and other services in its search engine, while leaving the services of other companies behind.
These allegations were made against Google
Apart from this, the European Commission said that Google also prevents app developers on its Play Store from showing better offers to customers on other platforms. The Commission believes that this affects fair competition in the market. The European Union has given Google 60 days to change its way of working. If the company does not do this, an additional fine of up to 5% of the daily turnover can be imposed on it.
Trump threatened
Angered by this action, President Trump wrote on social media that America is not the “piggy bank” of Europe. He said that imposing such fines on American tech companies is wrong and discriminatory. Trump alleged that Europe is deliberately targeting American companies. Trump also said that such action will not be tolerated during his tenure.
America can impose tariffs
Trump warned that America could start an investigation against the European Union under Section 301. This is an American law through which the alleged unfair trade policies of a country are investigated. After the investigation is completed, America can also impose additional tariffs on that country. However, experts say that such an investigation may take several months to complete, but if Trump wants, tariffs can be implemented even earlier.
European Union gave this clarification
European Commission Vice President Teresa Ribera defended this action, saying that no company should get an advantage in the market just because it is a big company. He says that every company should get equal opportunity. At the same time, senior Google executive Kent Walker criticized the EU’s decision. He said that this decision will weaken Google’s products and customers will also have to bear the loss.
fine already imposed
This is not the first time Europe has taken action against Google. Since 2017, the European Union has imposed fines worth billions of dollars on Google several times. This also includes matters related to Android operating system and online advertising business. This new dispute has once again increased trade tensions between America and the European Union. Experts believe that if both sides adopt a tough stance, it could impact global trade, tech companies and investors.
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