The European Union's highest court on Thursday upheld a € 4.1 billion ($ 4.7 billion) antitrust penalty against Google, ending the company's final legal challenge in one of the bloc's biggest competition cases. The ruling marks a major victory for European regulators in their long-running scrutiny of Big Tech and confirms that Google abused the dominance of its Android mobile operating system, according to the European Court of Justice (ECJ).In a judgment that closes nearly a decade of litigation, the Luxembourg-based ECJ dismissed the appeal filed by Google and its parent company, Alphabet, against a 2022 ruling of the General Court, which had slightly reduced the original € 4.3 billion penalty imposed by the European Commission in 2018."The Court of Justice dismisses the appeal brought by Google and Alphabet against that judgment of the General Court, thereby confirming the penalty imposed on them, as revised by the General Court, for their anticompetitive practices relating to the Android operating system," the ECJ said according to AFP.The case traces its origins to April 15, 2015, when the European Commission opened formal proceedings against Google following complaints about its practices in the mobile internet market. After a three-year investigation, the Commission concluded that Google had breached EU competition law through contractual restrictions imposed on smartphone manufacturers, some dating back to January 1, 2011.According to the commission, Google required device makers to pre-install Google Search and the Chrome browser in order to obtain a licence for the Play Store. It also imposed anti-fragmentation agreements that prevented manufacturers from selling devices running Android versions not approved by Google. A third set of agreements shared advertising revenue with manufacturers and mobile network operators only if they agreed not to pre-install competing search services on specified devices.The commission said those practices helped Google strengthen its dominance in the online search market by limiting opportunities for rivals.The general court upheld those findings in 2022 but reduced the fine to € 4.1 billion after reassessing part of the commission's methodology. Google subsequently appealed before the ECJ, arguing that the case lacked legal basis and that the sanction penalised innovation.The company had also argued that regulators failed to apply the same standards to Apple, which gives preference to its own services on iPhones, and maintained that Android users could easily download competing applications.Rejecting those submissions, the ECJ said the lower court "did not err in law when assessing the anticompetitive effects of the pre-installation conditions laid down by the Android agreements".The court also rejected Google's remaining legal arguments and ordered the company to bear the european commission's legal costs.Responding to the verdict, Google said the decision overlooked the nature of the android ecosystem."The judgement failed to recognise our significant investment to ensure Android remains open, interoperable and free."The company added: "In any event, we adapted our agreements to comply with the initial decision back in 2018 and we remain focused on continued innovation and openness for our users, partners and developers."Consumer groups welcomed the ruling.European consumer organisation BEUC called it "a big win for Europe", while arguing that faster enforcement was still required to address competition concerns involving large technology companies."For years, Android users were steered towards Google search and the Chrome browser, leaving little room for alternatives to challenge, even those offering greater innovative solutions or better privacy setting," BEUC director general Agustin Reyna told AFP.The Android case is one of several major competition proceedings brought by Brussels against Google. Between 2017 and 2019, the European Commission imposed antitrust fines totalling € 8.2 billion on the company.Since then, the European Union has introduced the Digital Markets Act (DMA), giving regulators broader powers to impose obligations on large digital platforms before anti-competitive conduct takes hold. Google is already facing multiple investigations under the DMA, while the commission last year also fined Apple and Meta under the legislation.