Inquiry ordered against Google in India, news publishers have leveled allegations

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has ordered an inquiry into Alphabet-owned Google following allegations made by news publishers. The CCI, in its initial view, admitted that Google had violated certain antitrust laws. In its order passed on Friday, the CCI has said that Google dominates online search services in the country and may have imposed unfair conditions on news publishers. Google has not said anything in this matter yet.

According to Reuters, the ‘Digital News Publishers Association’ is the complainant in this case. It is an association of digital branches of some of the largest media companies in the country. It said that Google denied its members fair advertising revenue. The CCI order said that the vital role played by the news media in a well functioning democracy cannot be underestimated. It seems that Google is using its dominant position in the market.

News organizations that have been losing their advertising revenue to online aggregators like Google have complained that over the years, tech companies have been using their stories and other features in search results without paying for them. The CCI order also mentions new rules in Australia and France that have led to billions of dollars in licensing deals between Google and news organizations around the world.

For some time now, orders have come against Google from many countries. Just a few days ago, French data privacy watchdog CNIL has fined Google a record 150 million euros (about Rs 1,265 crore). It is alleged that Google has made it difficult for Internet users to refuse cookies. CNIL has said that Facebook of Meta Platforms was also fined 60 million euros (approximately Rs 505 crore) for the same reason. The watchdog said in a statement, citing Google’s video-streaming platform, “CNIL has found that facebook.com, google.fr and youtube.com do not allow cookies to be denied as easily as possible.” They have to experience.