Alphabet, Google's parent company, could face one of the biggest penalties in its history. Reuters reports that the European Union plans to launch an investigation into the company for possible monopolistic practices in relation to its online advertising business.
European Union antitrust regulators will begin an investigation into Google's advertising business later this year. Specifically, they will investigate monopolistic practices against advertisers , media publishers, intermediaries and competitors, according to the source.
According to data from eMarketer, Google is expected to keep 27.5% of global online advertising spending throughout the year. These figures may not seem alarming, but the competitors say that the North American company has so much influence that , inevitably, depend on them and leave the competition out.
Google and its record of sanctions for abuse of power in the European Union
It is not the first time that Google has faced sanctions imposed by the European Union in relation to the monopolistic practices of its products and services. In the last 10 years, the European Union has fined Google more than 8 billion euros for antitrust practices by blocking rivals in sectors such as online commerce, its optional Android system and online advertising.
In the last week, France has fined Google for its dominant position in the online advertising market. The French Competition Authority found that the company carried out practices that prevented websites and applications from selling their advertising space to other advertising companies. The fine, which amounts to 220 million euros , has been accepted by Google. The multinational confirmed that it would also modify some of its methods used for the advertising business.
Google isn't the only big tech people have been laying their eyes on lately. Companies like Apple, Facebook or Amazon are also being scrutinized for various reasons in various parts of the world. In this sense, the European Union is being one of the most demanding.
