Google in trouble! CCI orders probe into its alleged abuse of dominance in news

Google is in trouble! The search engine giant has now been accused of abusing its dominance in the news aggregation industry. The complaint was filed by the Digital News Publishers Association and the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has ordered an investigation into the matter. 

The Digital News Publishers Association says that based on its findings, a majority of the traffic on Indian news websites is directed by online search engines, almost over 50 percent. This is where Google is said to be the most dominant search engine.

It is said that 50 percent of the total traffic on news websites comes via Google. Since Google is dominant player in the filed, it determines which news website gets discovered via its search through algorithms. 

CCI orders investigation against Google

The complaint also states that “news media companies create the context for the audience to interface with the advertiser, but online search engines like Google end up leveraging the revenue and returns much more than publishers.”

It is also said that Google has a monopolistic position with regards to online search in India and a very strong position in advertising intermediation. Google also controls the major share at each level.

Google has also been alleged to be a major stakeholder in the digital advertising industry, and it ends up deciding the amount to be paid to the publishers for the content. It also dictates the amount that need to be paid for the advertisements. 

The CCI has also directed the Director General (DG) to conduct an investigation into the matter, under the provisions of Section 26(1) of the Act. The DG needs to complete the investigation and submit a report on it within 60 days.