Google won a case in Europe with the EU Commission over competition issues in online advertising.

The General Court of the European Union sided with American Google (which belongs to Alphabet Inc.), which had challenged a €1.5 billion fine imposed by the European Commission in 2019.

The Commission fined Google for hindering competition in the online advertising sector. The regulator deemed that, leveraging its monopoly position on the market, Google restricted competitors' opportunities, including Microsoft Corp. and Yahoo Inc., to advertise on third-party websites using Google's ad platform AdSense.

The Commission argued that contracts between Google and web sites using its AdSense platform prohibited them from displaying ads for competitors.

However, the European Court accepted most of the Commission's arguments but concluded that the Commission made errors in its investigation and annulled its penalty decision.

"The Commission did not take all circumstances into account in evaluating the deadlines provided in the contracts it considered as abuses," said the court.

The Commission still has the option to appeal the ruling through a higher court.

Alphabet's stock increased by 0.7% in early trading on Wednesday, and its value has risen by 14% year-to-date.