Google fined 150 million Euros by France over anti-competitive behaviour

France’s competition authority fined internet search engine giant Google 150 million Euros ($167 million) for anti-competitive behavior and for abusing its dominant position on the market for advertising linked to web searches.

France and other European countries continue to maintain high levels of scrutiny on major U.S. tech companies such as Google, Facebook, Apple and Amazon, which are often criticized for having relatively low tax payments.

According to Isabelle de Silva, head of the French competition authority, Google’s dominance in the online advertising business was “extraordinary”, with the company having a market share of around 90% in that field. Google is said to appeal the fine.

In September, Google agreed to pay close to 1 billion Euros to French authorities to settle a fiscal fraud probe that began four years ago. In January, France’s data protection watchdog had fined Google 50 million Euros for breaching European Union online privacy rules.

The French watchdog had stated Google lacked transparency and clarity in the way it informed users about its handling of personal data, and had failed to properly obtain their consent for personalized ads.