Google under EU scrutiny for Android Auto restrictions, shows signs of progress

EU officials have had their scrutinizing eye facing big tech companies for quite a while now. No big tech company is managing to escape criticism and investigations from EU regulators, and EU officials are working hard to limit anti-competitive practices by big tech giants.

Android Auto, a popular app for connecting your Android phone to your car, has been quite the restrictive app for years, although now it's seen some substantial updates and changes. For the years of restrictions though, Google is facing some regulatory pressure.

Reportedly, Google's restrictions with Android Auto app templates may be breaching EU competition laws and have raised concerns. The case stems from courts in Italy, where the app JuicePass (an EV charging app) was reportedly blocked on Android Auto as it didn't fit into Google's app templates.

Apparently, JuicePass didn't work in existing Android Auto templates when it first tried to launch on the app. In 2021, Google was fined over the denial of JuicePass largely because Google was seemingly favoring its own navigation apps, Maps and Waze.

EU Court Advocate General Laila Medina said this week that this action may be in breach of competition rules enforced in the European Union. It's not clear though if this scrutiny takes into account that Google has loosened these restrictions over time.

Prior to the fine in 2021, Google had opened doors to new types of Android Auto apps, including navigation ones. Technically, this would have allowed JuicePass to launch on the platform, but so far, it's still not available on it. Google also cited security concerns as a reason the app was not able to be launched on Android Auto.

Google stated that since the case started, it's worked to add the template needed, and notes that many similar apps are already available globally on Android Auto. The Mountain View take giant also stated that they will be awaiting the final decision of the Court.

Google seems to be taking steps in the right direction by loosening restrictions on Android Auto and allowing more apps on the platform. While the past issues with JuicePass are concerning, it looks like Google has made efforts to fix the situation, and it's important to acknowledge that progress.