{"id":1110599,"date":"2026-07-25T14:08:23","date_gmt":"2026-07-25T14:08:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1110599\/"},"modified":"2026-07-25T14:08:23","modified_gmt":"2026-07-25T14:08:23","slug":"google-puzzlingly-fined-1b-for-being-too-google-for-the-eus-tastes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1110599\/","title":{"rendered":"Google Puzzlingly Fined $1B For Being Too Google For The EU\u2019s Tastes"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Google<\/p>\n

Close-up of a person’s hand holding an iPhone and using Google AI Mode, an experimental mode utilizing artificial intelligence and large language models to process Google search queries, Lafayette, California, March 24, 2025. (Photo by Smith Collection\/Gado\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Gado via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Apple\u2019s Siri AI isn\u2019t very smart. That\u2019s why future iPhones will pair Siri with Google\u2019s highly regarded Gemini AI. <\/p>\n

Seemingly what you\u2019ve just read has been glossed over by the European Union (EU). As news accounts the last few days indicate, the EU has fined Google $1 billion for \u201cunfairly\u201d favoring \u201cits own services on its widely used search engine.\u201d <\/p>\n

Except that Google\u2019s \u201cwidely used search engine\u201d is widely used for many reasons, including that Google\u2019s services are unrivaled. In other words, Google could deemphasize its services only if it wanted to drive users away from its own \u201cwidely used search engine.\u201d <\/p>\n

This is worth remembering with a deeper look into the EU\u2019s fine top of mind. It\u2019s not so much about Google as it\u2019s about third-party entities that want their products and services more heavily emphasized on Google\u2019s \u201cwidely used search engine.\u201d <\/p>\n

Ok, but the third parties can\u2019t have it both ways. Neither can EU regulators. <\/p>\n

What makes favoring on Google\u2019s \u201cwidely used search engine\u201d so desirable for entities outside Google is how popular Google is among individuals the world over. Which means that Google, to remain Google, must continue to not just meet, but lead the needs of users who have myriad choices. This includes prominently featuring its unrivaled products. About this, Apple instructs. <\/p>\n

Popular as the iPhone is, Apple has never hidden from Siri\u2019s limitations. It similarly hasn\u2019t hidden from the fact that at least at present, it doesn\u2019t have a ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, Grok, or Meta AI equivalent. Has the latter signaled Apple\u2019s decline? Far from it. <\/p>\n

As was argued here in March<\/a>, and surely without knowing what\u2019s ahead in AI or anything else (how many inside and outside technology predicted the before and after of November 30, 2022?), Apple has positioned itself brilliantly for the potential commoditization of AI. Rather than spend copious sums developing it, Apple opened its iPhones and other devices up to the genius of others. This once again includes Google and its Gemini AI. <\/p>\n

Fully cognizant that the utility of its products is quite a bit greater when paired with technological advances achieved outside its own Cupertino walls, Apple is actively opening its \u201cwidely used\u201d devices to non-Apple technology. Which is something EU regulators plainly glossed over in foisting the $1 billion fine on Google. <\/p>\n

Really, what is Google supposed to do? Do EU regulators seriously expect it to favor the technology of others on its widely used search engine, particularly if what\u2019s produced by others doesn\u2019t measure up to what\u2019s been developed inside Google? EU regulators aren\u2019t just demanding that Google choose a path of self-harm that is anti-consumer, they\u2019re also demanding that it harm itself in such a way that will imperil the commercial development of the very third parties intent on utilizing Google\u2019s popularity as their own growth strategy. <\/p>\n

Which requires a look at the accusatory core of the EU\u2019s case and its $1 billion fine of Google. Implied in the latter is that in favoring its own services over those of outside providers, Google has been restraining the development and growth of outside providers. Nothing could be further from the truth. See Apple again. <\/p>\n

As evidenced by Apple\u2019s incorporation of Google\u2019s Gemini into its Siri product, no business can remain great by providing a subpar product. Google\u2019s Gemini will immediately make Apple\u2019s products a great deal more appealing in the marketplace, and so will Google\u2019s suite of products and services be much more appealing the better they are, and regardless of where the improvements come from. Fines aren\u2019t the answer to the EU\u2019s laments, but better third parties are. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Close-up of a person’s hand holding an iPhone and using Google AI Mode, an experimental mode utilizing artificial…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1110600,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5174],"tags":[1662,2000,299,5187,1699,2332,867,20985],"class_list":["post-1110599","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-eu","tag-apple","tag-eu","tag-europe","tag-european","tag-european-union","tag-gemini","tag-google","tag-john-tamny"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116981013295799575","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1110599","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1110599"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1110599\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1110600"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1110599"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1110599"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1110599"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}