Possible China Probe, DOJ Case, Adds To String Of Antitrust Actions Against Google

September 2020The Chinese State Council’s antitrust committee may initiate an antitrust probe against Google, Reuters reported, citing a complaint by local phone maker Huawei that the search company has used the dominance of its Android mobile operating system to stifle competition. After being blacklisted by the Trump government, Huawei phones still ship with Android, which is open source, but they can no longer run Google’s popular apps like Gmail or Google Maps. A potential probe into Google would likely examine accusations that due to Android’s market dominance, losing Google’s support may cause “extreme damage” to Chinese companies like Huawei.

September 2020The U.S. Justice Department has been investigating Google’s dominance in the web search and advertising domain as the company’s search engine holds a 92.05% market share worldwide. According to Reuters, The DOJ may file a suit against Google as soon as the first week of October and it is currently urging state attorneys general to sign onto the suit.

July 2020The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) put out a draft News Media Bargaining Code, which requires digital platforms like Google to pay Australian news companies for their content, give news companies a month’s notice before making any changes to their algorithms and other “substantial changes” to how news is displayed. Online platforms like Facebook and Google account for nearly 70% of all digital ad spending in Australia. This has been a cause of concern for publishers who increasingly rely on Google for both traffic and ad-revenue.

June 2020June 2020: The European Union issued new rules, which include rules for data-sharing and how digital marketplaces operate that aimed to loosen Google’s grip on the web search. The EU had then acknowledged that despite facing action for its anti-competitive behavior which included over $8 billion in fines, Google is yet to see more competition in the region.

June 2019The Competition Commission of India (CCI) accused Google of misusing its dominant position in India by making it harder for phone makers to choose alternative versions of Android. In February that year, the CCI had also fined Google Rs 1.35 billion (nearly $21 million) for “search bias” and abusing its dominant position in the market.