Swedish Court Orders Google to Pay $1.5B to Klarna Over Search Dominance Abuse
A Swedish court has ordered Google to pay $1.5 billion in damages to Klarna, the parent company of the price comparison site PriceRunner, after finding the tech giant guilty of abusing its search engine dominance to unfairly favor its own shopping service.
The landmark ruling, amounting to approximately 14.3 billion Swedish Krona (SEK), marks the largest antitrust compensation in Sweden's history. However, the awarded amount falls significantly short of the 78 billion SEK (around $8 billion) initially sought by PriceRunner.
According to the court, Google’s practices caused a substantial decline in traffic to rival price comparison platforms starting in 2008, as the company began prominently displaying its own shopping service in search results at the expense of competitors.
Google’s Right to Appeal According to Klarna, the total compensation reaches approximately $1.97 billion when factoring in accrued interest. However, the payout is not immediate, as Google maintains the right to appeal the verdict—a step the company confirmed it is actively considering.
Google stated that it had already implemented changes to its advertising and shopping services in 2017 to comply with regulatory requirements. The company expressed its disagreement with the court's decision and indicated it would explore all available legal options.
This lawsuit is part of a broader wave of European legal actions against Google concerning its price comparison practices. The European Commission previously fined the company over the same issue, a decision later upheld by European courts. Similar lawsuits are currently pending in the UK, Italy, and Germany, reflecting escalating regulatory pressure on Big Tech companies across Europe.