Daily News
13 November 2020
A group of 135 Internet companies, including job boards, and 30 industry groups yesterday sent a letter to EU Commissioner for Competition, Margrethe Vestager, raising concerns about Google and what they say are anti-competitive practices harming their businesses.
“While we compete amongst ourselves for the best consumer experience, there is one common competitor that does not compete fairly — Google,” according to the letter. “We all face strong competition from Google in our respective search services markets. Google has entered each of these markets by leveraging its unassailable dominance in general Internet search — to gain a competitive head start and quickly gain market shares.”
The letter says Google gains unjustified advantages by preferentially treating its own services within general search results pages by displaying specialized search results in “OneBoxes” that appear above generic search results.
“While a targeted regulation of digital gatekeepers may help in the long run, the Commission should first use its existing tools to enforce the Shopping precedent and ensure equal treatment within Google’s general search results page,” the letter states. The Shopping precedent refers to the €2.42 billion fine imposed on Google in 2017 by the European Commission after it ruled the company had abused its power by promoting its own shopping comparison service at the top of search results. Google is appealing the fine.
Danish job board operator Jobindex said the letter is a follow-up to a separate letter last year sent to the Commissioner for Competition regarding Google for Jobs and believes Google for Jobs is similar to Google Shopping in abusing its dominant position to promote its services.
Google refuted allegations that it unfairly favours its own services in a statement to Reuters. “People expect Google to give them the most relevant, high quality search results that they can trust,” a Google representative said.
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