MINSK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th January, 2022) The Belarusian Supreme Court declined Google's appeal to reverse the decision of the Belarusian Ministry of Antimonopoly Regulation and Trade (MART), which accused the IT giant of abusing its dominant market position.
In July 2021, MART accused Google of breaking the republic's antimonopoly regulations, as it holds the dominant position in the market of apps designed for devices running on Google's operating system, Android. In particular, Google allows device developers to pre-install Google Play, the biggest app store for Android, only after some conditions are met, such as the obligatory use of Google mobile Services, a collection of proprietary applications and application programming interfaces. The review of Google activities in Belarus was initiated after the Russian IT-giant Yandex filed a complaint.
"In July 2021, Google LLC challenged in court the actions of MART on establishing the dominant market position of the company ... after court hearings behind closed doors, Google LLC appeal was denied," the message read.
The court ruled that the MART's decision on Google's abuse of its position was lawful and justified. Google was found guilty in accordance with the Belarusian code of administrative offenses. The court imposed a fine of $562,000 on the company.
