Google hit with $1 billion in fines as EU braces for Trump battle
Google hit with $1 billion in fines as EU braces for Trump battle
谷歌被罚 10 亿美元，欧盟严阵以待应对特朗普政府挑战
On Thursday, Google became the third tech giant slapped with massive Digital Markets Act (DMA) fines, ordered to pay more than $1 billion for two serious violations that the European Commission (EC) found went unchecked for way too long. 周四，谷歌成为第三家因违反《数字市场法案》（DMA）而被处以巨额罚款的科技巨头。欧盟委员会（EC）认定谷歌存在两项长期未得到纠正的严重违规行为，并对其开出了超过 10 亿美元的罚单。
In a press release, the EC explained that the fines were due to Google “self-preferencing its own services on Google Search” ($522 million) and for anti-steering practices, like charging fees or restricting app developers from directing consumers to cheaper purchase options outside of Google Play ($488 million). 欧盟委员会在新闻稿中解释称，罚款的原因是谷歌在“谷歌搜索中偏袒自家服务”（5.22 亿美元），以及存在“反引导”行为，例如收取费用或限制应用开发者引导消费者在 Google Play 之外寻找更便宜的购买渠道（4.88 亿美元）。
Google has 60 days to make changes to its services, or else risk even more daily fines. To comply with the DMA, the EC has asked Google to “treat third-party services that feature on Google’s search results in a fair and non-discriminatory manner” compared to its own services in categories like shopping, hotels, and flights. And Google must also allow app developers, “both technically and contractually,” to freely sign up users and promote offers outside of Google Play. 谷歌有 60 天的时间对其服务进行整改，否则将面临每日更高的罚款。为了符合 DMA 的要求，欧盟委员会要求谷歌在购物、酒店和航班等类别中，以“公平且非歧视的方式”对待出现在谷歌搜索结果中的第三方服务，并与自家服务一视同仁。此外，谷歌还必须在“技术和合同层面”允许应用开发者自由地在 Google Play 之外注册用户并推广优惠活动。
Google can appeal the decision, and if it does, it may get backing from the Trump administration. Ahead of the EC’s decision, 25 Republican lawmakers urged Donald Trump in a letter to retaliate against the anticipated Google fine by launching trade investigations. Such a move could threaten the European Union with tariffs or restrict the EU from accessing US tech, if any resulting probes confirm lawmakers’ fears that the EU plans to use the DMA as a “tool of economic extraction and regulatory coercion against American firms,” Reuters reported. 谷歌可以对该决定提出上诉，如果这样做，它可能会得到特朗普政府的支持。在欧盟委员会做出决定之前，25 名共和党议员曾致信唐纳德·特朗普，敦促他通过发起贸易调查来报复谷歌可能面临的罚款。据路透社报道，如果调查结果证实了议员们的担忧，即欧盟计划将 DMA 作为“针对美国企业的经济掠夺和监管胁迫工具”，那么此举可能会威胁到欧盟，导致其面临关税或被限制获取美国技术。
The letter may embolden Trump, who’s been threatening to impose more aggressive trade restrictions against the EU since last spring—when Apple and Meta together were first to get hit with more than $700 million in DMA fines. Lawmakers don’t even think that Apple and Meta should be labeled as gatekeepers under the DMA since popular Chinese firms like Temu and AliExpress aren’t bound by the same rules, the letter said. 这封信可能会助长特朗普的气焰，自去年春天苹果和 Meta 首次被处以超过 7 亿美元的 DMA 罚款以来，他一直威胁要对欧盟实施更激进的贸易限制。信中还提到，议员们甚至认为苹果和 Meta 不应被列为 DMA 下的“看门人”，因为像 Temu 和 AliExpress 这样受欢迎的中国公司并未受到同样规则的约束。
“It is important to make clear that the EU’s access to the US market is not guaranteed and can be limited should the EU continue to pursue discriminatory acts, policies, and practices in the digital sector,” the letter said. 信中写道：“必须明确的是，如果欧盟继续在数字领域推行歧视性行为、政策和做法，欧盟进入美国市场的机会将无法得到保障，并可能受到限制。”
In response to the letter, the EC’s spokesperson Thomas Regnier told Reuters that “when it comes to our rules, the EU has the sovereign right to regulate economic activities on its territory.” “This of course also applies to our digital regulation, where we will keep enforcing our rules in a fair and non-discriminatory manner—as we have always done,” Regnier said. 针对这封信，欧盟委员会发言人托马斯·雷尼尔（Thomas Regnier）告诉路透社：“在我们的规则方面，欧盟拥有在其领土内监管经济活动的主权。”雷尼尔表示：“这当然也适用于我们的数字监管，我们将一如既往地以公平和非歧视的方式执行我们的规则。”
Seemingly, the EU is still hopeful that a diplomatic path will emerge allowing it to enforce the DMA without clashing with the Trump administration. “We believe there is significant potential to deepen cooperation across a broad set of digital issues, including those identified in the EU-US Joint Statement, while respecting our regulatory autonomy,” Regnier said. 欧盟似乎仍希望通过外交途径解决问题，从而在不与特朗普政府发生冲突的情况下执行 DMA。雷尼尔说：“我们相信，在尊重我们监管自主权的同时，在广泛的数字问题上深化合作具有巨大潜力，包括欧盟-美国联合声明中确定的那些问题。”
Google rushes to make changes
谷歌急于做出改变
Risking even higher fines for delaying updates, Google does not appear to be depending on Trump quickly stepping in to block the fines. The EC confirmed that Google has already “rolled out changes related to Google’s steering terms,” which the Commission said showed “good progress towards compliance.” 由于延迟更新可能面临更高的罚款，谷歌似乎并不指望特朗普能迅速介入以阻止罚款。欧盟委员会证实，谷歌已经“推出了与谷歌引导条款相关的变更”，委员会称这显示出“在合规方面取得了良好进展”。
Additionally, Google has conducted testing on “changes to how it presents its own services on Google Search for free services such as shopping, hotels and flights,” as well as “changes to how it presents shopping ads and content related services, such as sports.” The search giant has also said that it will voluntarily make changes to AI Overviews and AI Mode to similarly align with the EC’s expectations and avoid self-preferencing or anti-steering practices. 此外，谷歌还对“在谷歌搜索中展示购物、酒店和航班等免费服务的方式”进行了测试，并对“展示购物广告和体育等内容相关服务的方式”进行了调整。这家搜索巨头还表示，将自愿对“AI 概览”（AI Overviews）和“AI 模式”进行调整，以符合欧盟委员会的预期，避免出现偏袒自家服务或反引导行为。
Ars could not immediately reach Google for comment, but its President of Global Affairs, Kent Walker, told Reuters that Google disagreed with the decision and is considering an appeal. Ars 未能立即联系到谷歌置评，但其全球事务总裁肯特·沃克（Kent Walker）告诉路透社，谷歌不同意这一决定，并正在考虑上诉。
Yelp applauds Google DMA fine
Yelp 为谷歌 DMA 罚款叫好
Although Google is cooperating with the EC, the company is clearly upset about required changes that it claims degrade its popular products just to satisfy “a small group of self-serving complainants.” 尽管谷歌正在与欧盟委员会合作，但该公司显然对所要求的整改感到不满，称这些整改只是为了满足“一小撮自私的投诉者”，从而损害了其热门产品的体验。
“To comply, we are having to strip away real-time Search features Europeans love—like instant pricing and direct availability for hotels, flights, and restaurants—and dismantle safety protections on Google Play,” Walker said. “Regulation should improve products, not make them worse,” he added. 沃克说：“为了合规，我们不得不剥离欧洲用户喜爱的实时搜索功能，比如酒店、航班和餐厅的即时价格和直接预订功能，并拆除 Google Play 上的安全保护措施。”他补充道：“监管应该改善产品，而不是让产品变得更糟。”
Since last September, Google has advocated for a “reset” of the DMA, warning that US tech giants face “considerable uncertainty and unpredictability” trying to comply. Google has maintained that the DMA currently favors “commercial interests of a small set of intermediary sites” and complying has already delayed some of Google’s AI features “by up to a year.” 自去年 9 月以来，谷歌一直主张对 DMA 进行“重置”，并警告称美国科技巨头在试图合规时面临“相当大的不确定性和不可预测性”。谷歌坚持认为，目前的 DMA 偏袒“少数中介网站的商业利益”，而合规工作已经导致谷歌的一些 AI 功能“推迟了长达一年”。
However, the EC said the fines were “proportionate and appropriate,” following a “thorough investigation, including feedback from market participants, and extensive dialogue with Google.” 然而，欧盟委员会表示，在进行了“彻底的调查（包括听取市场参与者的反馈）并与谷歌进行了广泛对话”之后，这些罚款是“适度且恰当的”。
Among Google rivals celebrating the DMA ruling was Yelp. In a statement provided to Ars, Yelp’s vice president of public policy, David Segal, “applauded” the decision as finally ending Google’s enduring abuses, while accusing Google of degrading its own user experience by promoting its own products above others. 在庆祝这一 DMA 裁决的谷歌竞争对手中，Yelp 位列其中。Yelp 公共政策副总裁大卫·西格尔（David Segal）在提供给 Ars 的一份声明中“赞赏”了这一决定，称其终于终结了谷歌长期的滥用行为，同时指责谷歌通过将自家产品置于他人之上来损害自身的用户体验。
“When told to give equal footing to rivals in line with the DMA, a solution that fosters competition and benefits consumers, Google has instead consistently chosen to unilaterally degrade its own user experience by removing functionality, which is the telltale mark of a monopolist,” Segal said. “European consumers and businesses will reap the rewards of a more fair and open Internet as a result of meaningful enforcement of the DMA, and we are hopeful that the Commission will work to ensure Google comes into compliance and im…” 西格尔说：“当被要求根据 DMA 为竞争对手提供平等地位（这是一种促进竞争并造福消费者的解决方案）时，谷歌却始终选择通过删除功能来单方面降低自身的用户体验，这是垄断者的典型特征。”“由于 DMA 的有效执行，欧洲消费者和企业将从一个更公平、更开放的互联网中获益，我们希望欧盟委员会能确保谷歌实现合规并……”