The European Union (EU) has fined leading U.S. technology firms a total of $7 billion U.S. over the past two years.
Alphabet (GOOGL), Apple (AAPL), and Meta Platforms (META) are each contesting fines from the EU over violations of the economic bloc’s antitrust and competition laws.
Since 2024, those companies have been fined a total of $7 billion U.S.
The U.S. technology giants say that the fines reflect the EU’s hostility towards innovation and free market enterprise.
For their part, European regulators and politicians say the fines are aimed at getting the companies to make decisions in the best interest of consumers.
“All companies doing business in the EU are accountable to the European people and should respect the rules meant to protect them,” said the European Commission recently.
The fines also come as U.S. technology companies increasingly dominate the European market, from smartphones to cloud computing.
Amazon (AMZN), Microsoft (MSFT) and Google currently control more than 70% of the European cloud market.
However, the ongoing fines are drawing attention and ire from the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, which has accused the EU of over-regulating American firms.
The EU fines are a growing bone of contention in ongoing trade talks between the U.S. and EU.
GOOGL stock has risen 108% over the past 12 months to trade at $318.48 U.S. per share.
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