EU court orders Apple and Google to pay billions in back taxes and antitrust fines

The European Court of Justice has ruled that Apple must pay 13 billion euros ($14.3 billion) in back taxes to Ireland, related to a 2016 case where Ireland gave Apple an illegal tax benefit. This decision overturns a lower court's ruling in 2020 that had quashed the European Commission's order. Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, had previously dismissed the Commission's position as "total political crap". The court also upheld a 2.4 billion euro fine against Google in an antitrust case. The ruling is seen as a significant victory for the European Union's efforts to rein in tech giants and ensure that multinationals pay their fair share of taxes.