Despite recent crackdowns against American tech companies, the European Commission would like to go on record as saying they are NOT specifically targeting U.S. firms.
“The American firms are allowed to have dominant positions, even monopolies here in the EU, according to our regulations,” European Commissioner for Digital Single Market Andrus Ansip told the Wall Street Journal. “But nobody has a right to abuse its dominant position.”
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union, and oversees antitrust investigations against any companies operating within Europe.
While only 21 of 81 companies affected by European Commission antitrust decisions between 2010 and 2014 were based in the U.S., American firms account for over half of the the €1.36 billion in fines handed down by the Commission over that timespan. (Mostly due to the €561 million tariff levied against Microsoft in 2011.)
Google is the latest stateside to come under EU scrutiny, as they’ve been charged with a number of antitrust violations for both its web and Android products.
Apple has also spent its share of the time under the EU’s microscope, due to its tax deal with Ireland, and its App Store in-app purchases policies.
