EU order against Google opens new doors for mobile industry

The logo of Google is pictured during the Viva Tech start-up and technology summit in Paris, France, May 25, 2018. REUTERS/Charles Platiau

SAN FRANCISCO: A European Union antitrust judgement against Google on July 18 invites more competition from software developers including Microsoft Corp, Amazon.com Inc and Samsung Electronics Co, but still leaves them at an disadvantage, industry executives and analysts said.

The EU found that the Alphabet Inc unit illegally bolstered its dominance in the mobile business since 2011 by forcing Android device makers to pre-install Google Search and its Chrome browser together with its Google Play app store, paying them to pre-install only Google Search, and blocking them from using modified versions of Android.