*By Alisha Haridasani*
Google on Wednesday said it will appeal a record $5 billion fine from EU regulators for using its Android platform to quash competition.
But its argument may not have legs to stand on, said Quartz reporter Edmund Heaphy.
"The law is quite clear-cut, and the antitrust regulations are quite clear," he said. "This isn't a new thing for the EU. Microsoft was fined in 2004 for a very similar practice."
The European Commission holds that Google unfairly leveraged the market position of Android, the mobile operating system that powers about 80 percent of phones in the world.
“Google has used Android as a vehicle to cement the dominance of its search engine,” said Commissioner Margrethe Vestager in a [statement](http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-18-4581_en.htm).
The company has 90 days to end its illegal practices and, if it fails to comply, parent company Alphabet will be forced to fork over 5 percent of its average daily revenue. The company brought in $103 billion last year.
Google argues its Android system has, in fact, encouraged competition.
“Rapid innovation, wide choice, and falling prices are classic hallmarks of robust competition, and Android has enabled all of them,” said CEO Sundar Pichai in a [blog post](https://blog.google/around-the-globe/google-europe/android-has-created-more-choice-not-less/).
The Silicon Valley giant offers the Android system for free to handset makers and makes money off of its search engine. This ruling, however, could force Google to radically change that business model and instead start charging manufacturers to use Android, said Pichai.
The fine announced Wednesday is the largest antitrust penalty ever levied, further demonstrating the European bloc's attempts to rein in tech companies that, across the Atlantic, are perceived as untouchable.
The EU slapped Google with a separate $2.7 billion fine last year ー which at the time set its own record ー for unfairly promoting its own shopping service in search results. And in May the union implemented the General Data Protection Regulation, raising the standards for user data privacy and forcing companies around the globe to alter their data collection processes.
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/google-hit-with-5-billion-eu-fine)
Nvidia on Wednesday became the first public company to reach a market capitalization of $5 trillion. The ravenous appetite for the Silicon Valley company’s chips is the main reason that the company’s stock price has increased so rapidly since early 2023.
Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global, breaks down September’s CPI print and inflation trends, explaining what it means for markets.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
