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Google, new EU investigation into online ads

The EU Antitrust wants to understand if Google has broken competition rules by favoring its own advertising services to the detriment of other providers – Vestager: “A level playing field is essential”

Google, new EU investigation into online ads

Google's new problems with the Antitrust. The European Commission was the one to open a formal investigation. The purpose is to assess whether the Mountain View giant has broken the competition rules by favoring its own services advertisement online in the so-called “ad tech” supply chain, harming ad technology service providers, advertisers, intermediaries and online publishers.

In 2020, Google made money from online ads 147 billion dollars, an unattainable figure for any other company in the world of any other company in the world. About 16% of its revenue comes from its display or network business, where other media companies use Google's technology to sell ads on their website and apps.

The EU therefore wants to understand if Google has violated or distorted competition law in its favour, limiting third-party access to user data for advertising purposes on websites and apps, reserving this data for their own use.

“Online advertising services are at the heart of the model according to which Google and publishers monetize their online services – explained the number one of the EU Antitrust, Margrethe Vestager -. Google collects data to be used for targeted advertising purposes, sells advertising space and also acts as an online advertising intermediary. Hence it is present in almost all levels of the supply chain for online advertising. We are concerned that Google has made competition in ad technologies more difficult. A level playing field is essential for everyone in the supply chain. Fair competition is important: both for advertisers to reach consumers on publisher sites and for publishers to sell their space to advertisers, generate revenue and finance for content. We will also review Google's user tracking policies to ensure they are consistent with fair competition."

Reuters recalls that in the last decade the EU Antitrust has fined the company for over 8 billion ($9,8 billion) for blocking rivals in online shopping, Android smartphones and online advertising.

Finally, it should be emphasized that, last week, Google reached a agreement with the French Antitrust under which he will have to pay a fine of 268 million dollars (220 million euros) for having committed an abuse of a dominant position and having implemented unfair competition in the digital marketing sector. In mid-May it was the Italian Antitrust that fined the US giant with a fine of 102 million.

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