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Competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager seeks to safeguard competition in apps market.
The European Commission is examining Google’s relationship with device makers and operators over concerns about competition in the apps market.
"We need to be sure that big companies don’t try to protect themselves by holding back innovation," said competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager, in a speech delivered on Monday at an event organised by the Dutch government, which was published on the Commission’s Website.
Vestager is worried about Google pre-loading its own apps and services onto Android devices, rather than letting OEMs and operators decide.
"Our concern is that, by requiring phone makers and operators to pre-load a set of Google apps, rather than letting them decide for themselves which apps to load, Google might have cut off one of the main ways that new apps can reach customers," she said.
Vestager said the Commission is therefore "looking closely at Google’s contracts with phone makers and operators."
The EC has been investigating claims of anti-competitive practices regarding Android since April 2015. Brussels aims to establish whether Google has hindered competition in the market for mobile operating systems, applications and services by requiring or incentivising device makers to exclusively pre-install its own apps and services.
The investigation also focuses on whether Google has harmed competition by preventing OEMs from developing their own versions of Android, and if Google has illegally hindered the development of rival applications and services.
