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Victory in court for the EU in two key cases against Apple and Google

by AI | 10.Sep 2024 | Europe in brief AI

European justice definitively sided with the European Commission against the American tech giants Apple and Google on Tuesday in two long-standing legal cases with significant financial stakes.

This photo taken on April 27, 2023 in Toulouse, in the southwest of France, shows a screen displaying the Apple logo and the European flag. (Photo: Lionel BONEVENTURE / AFP)

Brussels – The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), the court of last resort, has ruled that Apple should repay 13 billion to Ireland for having benefited from undue tax advantages, equated to an illegal State aid.

In a separate ruling, the Luxembourg-based court confirmed a fine of 2.4 billion against Google for anticompetitive practices.

Both groups immediately said they were “disappointed” in separate statements.

The Apple case dates back to 2016 when Brussels had ordered the iPhone manufacturer to repay that 13 billion to Ireland.

The amount corresponds to the profits derived from a favorable tax treatment granted from 2003 to 2014, in this country where Apple had repatriated all of its income generated in Europe (as well as in Africa, the Middle East, and India).

In the Google case, the Court found that the group had “abused its dominant position by promoting its own product comparison service.” “The appeal filed by Google and (the parent company) Alphabet is dismissed.” (September 10, 2024)