Google Told by Russian Regulator to Unbundle Android Search

Russia’s antitrust regulator has ordered Google to amend agreements with smartphone producers that it said disadvantage third-party applications on devices running the Android operating system. Mountain View (CA)-based Google is abusing its market dominance through Android, the regulator ruled in September after a complaint from local search engine provider Yandex NV, which has been losing market share to its US rival on mobile devices.

Google has allowed Android-phone producers to use its application store Google Play on the condition that they also pre-install services from the company, including search, and prioritize those icons on screens, the Russian regulator said Sept. 14. Yandex has said Android’s default options push mobile users to Google services, limiting consumers’ ability to choose such services from Yandex or other vendors. “To restore competition on the market, Google should amend agreements with mobile-device producers within a month and exclude the anti-competitive clauses,” Russia’s Federal Anti-Monopoly Service said.