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EU Commissioner for Europe Fit for the Digital Age – Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager speaks to the media during a virtual press conference at Berlaymont, headquarters of the European Union Commission on November 26, 2020, in Brussels, Belgium.
Thierry Mons | Getty Images
The European Union accused Google on Wednesday of breaching antitrust rules in its advertising technology, known as adtech, and may seek to break up parts of the tech giant’s business to allay the bloc’s concerns.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, has tentatively concluded that Google is dominant in the European market for publisher ad servers and the openness automated ad buying tool. The commission also said that Google had abused this dominant position since at least 2014.
Alphabet, Google’s parent company, will now have the opportunity to read the concerns raised by the panel and defend its position in writing, as well as request an oral hearing to provide their comments.
The commission suggested that Google may have to break up the business in order to address the concerns raised and thus comply with the competition rules in the block.
“The Commission’s initial view is that only Google’s compulsory withdrawal of part of its services will address competition concerns,” EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager said in a statement.
She added, “(Google) collects user data, sells ad space, and acts as an online advertising intermediary. So Google is present at almost all levels of the so-called adtech supply chain.” “Our initial concern is that Google may have used its market position to benefit its own brokerage services. This has not only harmed Google’s competitors, but also the interests of publishers, while also increasing costs for advertisers. If confirmed, Google’s practices would be illegal Under our competition rules,
Google was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC on Wednesday.
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