Swedish Court Orders Google to Pay $1.5 Billion in Antitrust Damages
A Swedish court has ordered Google to pay approximately $1.5 billion in damages plus interest to PriceRunner. The ruling found that Google illegally favored its own price comparison service over rivals in search results for years.
Sweden's Patent and Market Court has ordered Google to pay 14.3 billion Swedish kronor (about $1.5 billion) plus interest to PriceRunner. The court found that Google illegally favored its own price comparison service over competing services in search results for years, constituting an abuse of its dominant market position.
PriceRunner, now owned by Klarna, had filed a lawsuit in 2022 seeking significant damages, claiming Google's practices reduced its traffic and profits in Sweden, Denmark, and the UK. While the court partially agreed with PriceRunner's claims, it awarded a substantially lower sum than sought, attributing financial harm to Google's conduct which it found continued longer than Google asserted.
This case is linked to the European Commission's 2017 antitrust decision against Google Shopping, which found the company abused its dominance by positioning its own comparison service more favorably. The EU's highest court upheld that decision in 2024, enabling such follow-on damages claims.
Google has stated it disagrees with the ruling and is considering an appeal. The decision adds to a growing number of antitrust-related damages claims against Google across Europe and could influence future legal actions concerning similar alleged anti-competitive practices.