Google could be facing hefty lawsuits in the British and Dutch courts set to be filed in the next few weeks. Between the two lawsuits, Google may need to pay out €25 billion (~$25.4 billion) in fines. According to Reuters, the lawsuits allege that Google has been employing unfair advertising practices.
The Geradin Partners lawfirm issued the following statement on behalf of publishers affected by Google’s alleged practices.
It is time that Google owns up to its responsibilities and pays back the damages it has caused to this important industry. This is why today we are announcing these actions across two jurisdictions to obtain compensation for EU and UK publishers.” – Damien Geradin
A Google spokesperson told Reuters that “the lawsuit is speculative and opportunistic,” and the company plans to “fight it vigorously”.
The claim in the UK will aim to recover compensation for site owners with banner advertisements on their websites including traditional publishers. Meanwhile, the Dutch claim is open to any affected publishers.