Google Fined $47 Million by Russian Court for Alleged Video Hosting Market Abuse

Alphabet's Google faces another substantial penalty as Russian authorities crack down on foreign tech giants.

Credits: REUTERS

A Russian court has imposed a fine of 4 billion roubles ($47 million) on Alphabet's Google for its failure to pay a previous fine relating to the alleged abuse of its dominant position in the video hosting market, according to the country's anti-monopoly watchdog on Tuesday.

This latest decision marks another significant financial blow in Moscow's ongoing efforts to rein in foreign technology companies. In February 2022, Google was initially fined 2 billion roubles after the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) criticised the non-transparent and biased approach of Google's YouTube.

The FAS had accused the platform of employing an unpredictable method when suspending and blocking users' accounts and content, as reported by TASS news agency.

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• A Russian court has fined Google 4 billion roubles ($47 million) for not paying an earlier fine over alleged abuse in the video hosting market.

• Moscow continues to take aggressive action against foreign tech companies.

• Google had previously been fined 2 billion roubles in February 2022 for YouTube's handling of user accounts and content.