Google is now subject to a ‘”cease and desis’t” order by Japan’s Fair Trade Commission (JFTC), a move that forces the tech giant to stop requiring Android handset manufacturers to put in its search engine and various software applications. This step, the first of its kind against any US-based technology superpower, is quite likely to change the way Google operates its business in Japan and perhaps even outside Japan.
The Allegations: Antitrust Violation
The JFTC’s order is based on the Google Search case, whereby the commission claimed that Google infringed Japan’s anti-monopoly competition law. The commission ruled Google had also entered into license agreements with Android cellphone makers, which gave Google undue leverage to command the market. Such agreements, in the view of the JFTC, obliged the operators to install Google’s proprietary applications and services, primarily Google Search and Google Chrome, to the detriment of other competing products.
Google Mobile Services: A Controversial Topic
As concerning the Android system, it is free for consumers as well as hardware manufacturers. But, in order to include widely used applications like Gmail, the Maps application, and Google Play, phone makers license Google Mobile Services (GMS) to use these apps. GMS monetization comes with its own terms and conditions and undergoes a lot of variation according to the specific region. In the case of JFTC, it was noted that Google used its hold on the caution GMS trademark license to impose pre-installation along with oversized featuring of the Google Mobile Services logo on their devices.
The Issues of Non-Competitive Treatment: Search and Chrome Bundling
The investigation done by the JFTC narrowed down Google’s contracts with Android device manufacturers that, as the report claims, forced them to pre-install and put Google Search and Chrome in line of sight immediately. The commission noted in Google’s defense that at least six such agreements were in effect also as of December 2024. In addition to that, JFTC also pointed out the restrictive nature of the contracts, which did not allow phone makers to cut off exclusion of rival search services as a term for enabling participation in cross-national sharing of the relevant portion of the advertisement monetization ratio.
A Government Body’s “Probe” Becomes an “Order”: A More Complex Issue
In Japan, the competition watchdog, known as the JFTC, initiated its dive into Google’s practices on October 23, 2023. During this investigation, the JFTC issued a commitment plan, which was outlined by Google in April 2024 and was willing to address some of the anti-competitive concerns raised during the investigation. The order, however, is more of a forceful intervention suggesting that the JFTC believed Google needed more stringent corrective actions than what was offered.
Worldwide Concerns: Google’s Precedent
This Google order becomes even more important as it is the first time Japan has proactively exercised antitrust actions toward a major US technology company. Such cases across different regions of the world may begin to tackle similar issues concerning the increasing influence and activities of tech companies.
Post-Order/Action Monitoring: Ensuring Obedience to Restrictions
Google checking off all the boxes may still be off in five years down the line and in those five years the JFTC has enforced restrictions on appointing an independent third party. This third party will be tasked with the role of reporting to the JFTC in respect to Google’s obeisance to the order throughout the five-year period.
Google keywords—past challenges, scrutnies
With its recent action, Japan adds to the overriding scrutiny that Google faces from regulators in other corners of the world. For example, the European Union has already punished Google heavily for monopolistic practices in the Android ecosystem. Earlier this year, the United Kingdom’s Competition & Market Authority (CMA) also opened a case against Google’s market abuse in searching services that is part of the larger trend of increased attention to antitrust issues in the technology industry.
The struggle between Apple and Google: another angle of antitrust conflict
As much as the JFTC’s order concerns Google’s dealings with Android device manufacturers, the other side of the coin is the antitrust conflict of Apple and Google in the USA. Because of these practices, the U.S. Justice Department, along with several states, has sued Google for paying Apple sums exceeding billions through various contracts for their exclusive dealing to remain the default search engine on iPhones, MacBooks, and iPads. This trial, led by Judge Amit P. Mehta, is expected to deliver a ruling by the close of 2023.
A Google-Centered Chronology from Which Tech Regulation Evolves
The order to cease and desist caused by Japan’s governmental body is certainly a landmark event in the containment of the power wielded by big tech companies. It’s a unique set of circumstances that encapsulates the relationship of antitrust law, market power, and the competition in the current life of the digital world. The steps taken by the JFTC, along with other moves of this nature from different parts of the world, indicate that there is a growing tendency to rein in the…
