Seznam said Google abused a dominant position on the Czech
market with licensed operating systems and application stores for smart devices
equipped with Android operating system.
A spokeswoman for Google, a unit of Alphabet, said it could
not comment as it had not yet received the claim.
"Based on the European Commission's decision back in
2018 which confirmed that Google was in breach with EU antitrust rules, we
claim the compensation of damage that we have suffered while trying to
distribute our applications and services via mobile devices with Android
operation system," Seznam deputy chairman Pavel Zima said.
Google has rejected assertions that it unfairly favours its
own services. It says that its users are not locked in and that competition is
just one click away on the Internet.
"Android provides people with unprecedented choice in
deciding which applications they install, use and set as default on their
devices, and enables millions of app developers around the world to build
successful businesses," Google said.
Seznam said the claim, based on the period between 2011 and
2018, was sent to Google in the past few days with a 30-day deadline and it was
prepared to take civil legal action.
With a 25 percent share of the Czech search market, Seznam
said it earned revenue of CZK 4.69 billion in 2019 and cumulative revenue of
CZK 32 billion since 2011.
Reuters reported in November that a group of 165 companies
and industry bodies have called on European Union antitrust enforcers to take a
tougher line against Google.
© Reuters
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