Dive Brief:
- The European Union's antitrust regulator is getting ready to charge Google with antitrust violations for allegedly abusing its advertising dominance, people familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal.
- The core allegation underpinning the case is the charge that Google blocked websites from placing ads that provide competition to Google's own ad business.
- The EU is currently asking Google competitors to disclose confidential information that would support the antitrust charges, according to the report. The European Commission and Google both did not comment to the Journal.
Dive Insight:
Google's dominance over internet advertising yet again faces regulatory scrutiny in Europe.
The latest allegations focus on "exclusivity provisions in Google AdWords and search contracts with publishers, which allegedly prohibit them from using other services," according to Search Engine Land.
If formal charges are filed, it would be the third time the EU has charged Google with antitrust violations. European regulators have already filed antitrust charges over allegations that Google weighted search results to benefit its e-commerce service and, separately, require smartphone-makers to pre-install Google Search and Chrome in order to obtain access to other Google apps.
Advertising makes up about 90% of Google's $75 billion business. If Google is found guilty of the latest EU charges, it could face a fine up to 10% of its revenue, according to Politico, meaning that up to $21 million is at stake across all three cases.
Allegations of Google abusing its position are not new, but most charges have come abroad. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission ended its investigation into Google in 2013 after the company agreed to not block advertisers from coordinating campaigns across platforms.