Google has agreed to be less controlling about what Android phone manufacturers can do in Russia, as the result of a settlement today with the country’s antimonopoly agency.
In addition to paying a $7.8 million fine, Google has agreed to stop preventing phone manufacturers from changing the default search engine to anything but Google. Google won’t be allowed to require any app exclusivity on new phones, nor will it be allowed to prevent other companies’ apps from coming preinstalled.
