Google has been fined €2.95bn (£2.5bn) by the EU for allegedly abusing its power in the ad tech sector - the technology which determines which adverts should be placed online and where.
The European Commission said on Friday the tech giant had breached competition laws by favouring its own products for displaying online ads, to the detriment of rivals.
This comes amid increased scrutiny by regulators worldwide over the tech giant's empire in online search and advertising.
Google told the BBC the Commission's decision was 'wrong' and it would appeal.
'It imposes an unjustified fine and requires changes that will hurt thousands of European businesses by making it harder for them to make money,' said Lee-Anne Mulholland, global head of regulatory affairs at Google.
'There's nothing anti-competitive in providing services for ad buyers and sellers, and there are more alternatives to our services than ever before.'
U.S. President Donald Trump criticized the EU's ruling, labeling it 'very unfair' and threatening to investigate European tech practices that may result in tariffs.
In the Commission's decision on Friday, it accused Google of 'self-preferencing' its own technology over others. It found that Google intentionally promoted its own advertising exchange, AdX, at the expense of its competitors.
As a result of such practices, competitors and publishers faced higher costs and reduced revenues, which could have translated to consumers through increased service prices.
The regulatory body has mandated Google to cease these practices and pay the hefty fine.
Third Time Rules Broken
This fine represents one of the largest penalties imposed by the EU on a tech company for breaching competition rules. In a related incident, Google was fined €4.34bn (£3.9bn) in 2018 for leveraging its Android operating system to consolidate its market dominance.
Teresa Ribera, executive vice president of the Commission, indicated that the fine was increased due to Google's repeated violations of competition laws.
She warned that Google has 60 days to articulate how it intends to amend its practices, or the Commission may impose its own solutions, which could involve structural changes to its ad tech business.
