February 2, 2012

2 min read

Google Logo Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm

Google Must Pay $660,000 for Offering Google Maps for Free

Google Maps has come under fire in France (Credit: Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET) You may like that Google Maps is free, but a French court says it's actually anticompetitive.

Join Our Community of Science Lovers!

You may like that Google Maps is free, but a French court says it's actually anticompetitive.

A Paris court earlier this week ordered Google France and its parent company Google to pay plaintiff Bottin Cartographes 500,000 euros (about $660,000) for providing its free mapping services to businesses across the country. The court also required Google to pay a 15,000 euro fine for its practice.

"We proved the illegality of (Google's) strategy to remove its competitors," Jean-David Scemmama, attorney for Bottin Cartographes, a company that provides mapping services to businesses, told the AFP in an interview earlier this week. "The court recognized the unfair and abusive character of the methods used, and allocated Bottin Cartographes all it claimed. This is the first time Google has been convicted for its Google Maps application."

On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

Related stories

According to Scemmama, Bottin has been arguing its case against Google for two years, claiming the search giant was engaging in anticompetitive practices by using its free service to take control over the online-mapping industry.

In a statement to the AFP, Google said that it will appeal the court's decision, adding that Google Maps is still facing competition in that market.

Late last year, Google Maps also came under fire in the U.S., after British Telecom filed a lawsuit against the search giant in a Delaware District Court, claiming the mapping service violates patents it holds related to navigation information.

Google did not immediately respond to CNET's request for comment on the Maps lawsuit.

It’s Time to Stand Up for Science

If you enjoyed this article, I’d like to ask for your support. Scientific American has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.

I’ve been a Scientific American subscriber since I was 12 years old, and it helped shape the way I look at the world. SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.

If you subscribe to Scientific American, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.

In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can't-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world's best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.

There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you’ll support us in that mission.

Thank you,

David M. Ewalt, Editor in Chief, Scientific American

Subscribe