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Technology

South Korea fines Google $177mn for blocking Samsung, others on OS

US internet giant punished for banning use of 'fork' Android operating system

SEOUL -- South Korea's antitrust agency on Tuesday announced it is fining Google 207.4 billion won ($177 million) for forcing Samsung Electronics and other smart device manufacturers to use only approved versions of the Android operating system.

South Korea's Fair Trade Commission said that even though Android is open source, Google banned manufacturers from using so-called fork versions of the OS, which are created when developers take a copy of source code from one software package and develop it to create a distinct and separate piece of software.

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