Google and Apple Face $17B In Fines After EU Rejects Appeals
Silicon Valley’s tech giants just got hit with a hefty bill, and this time, there aren’t any loopholes left to jump through to escape it. The European Union’s highest court ruled against Apple in a tax evasion case and dismissed Google’s appeal in an antitrust case, upholding decisions that will require both companies to pay significant fines. Apple now owes Ireland $14.4B in back taxes, while Google faces a $2.65B antitrust fine. This double-whammy marks a major victory for EU regulators in their push to rein in Big Tech.
- The court ruled that Apple’s tax deal with Ireland, which allowed the company to pay less than 1% in taxes on European profits for nearly twenty years, was unlawful.
- Google’s fine stems from a 2017 ruling that found the company had abused its market position by favoring its own shopping comparison service in search results.
A bitter pill to swallow: Apple and Google have fought EU penalties for nearly a decade. While the rulings are a financial blow, EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager called them “a big win for European citizens and for tax justice.” Apple, however, insists the case “has never been about how much tax we pay, but which government we are required to pay it to.” Disappointed by the decision, Google believes the ruling was based on “a very specific set of facts.”
