Türkiye's antitrust watchdog slaps $75M fine on Google

A large Google logo is seen at Google's Bay View campus in Mountain View, California, US, on Aug. 13, 2024 (AFP Photo)

Türkiye's antitrust authority, the Competition Authority, has imposed a fine of ?2.61 billion ($74.69 million) on Google for violating competition laws in the online advertising sector.

The decision, announced on Friday, concluded an investigation into Google's dominance in the market and its alleged unfair practices.

The investigation first examined the allegations that Google introduced restrictions to ensure the exclusive use of its own demand side platforms (DSPs) for purchasing the inventory of the self-owned online vide sharing platform “YouTube,” and that it prevented the validation and measurement of YouTube advertisements through independent service providers. Google submitted commitments to the Board with respect to this allegation to eliminate any competitive concerns.

Turkish Competition Authority

FILES) A large Android logo head is displayed at Alphabet?s Google Android plaza booth during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 5, 2023. - The US government late November 20, 2024 asked a judge to order the dismantling of Google by selling its widely used Chrome browser in a major antitrust crackdown on the internet giant. Antitrust officials said in the filing that Google should also be made to sell Android if proposed remedies don't prevent the tech company from using its control of the mobile operating system to its advantage. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP)(FILES) The Google logo is seen during the Google I/O annual developers conference at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California on May 10, 2023. - The US government late November 20, 2024 asked a judge to order the dismantling of Google by selling its widely used Chrome browser in a major antitrust crackdown on the internet giant. (Photo by Josh Edelson / AFP)Google's headquarters, the Googleplex in Mountain View, California. (Wikipedia Commons)(FILES) A Google logo is seen during the "Made by Google" media event in Mountain View, California, on August 13, 2024. - The US government late November 20, 2024 asked a judge to order the dismantling of Google by selling its widely used Chrome browser in a major antitrust crackdown on the internet giant. (Photo by Josh Edelson / AFP)

Competition Authority's findings

The Competition Authority found that Google's economic entities, including Google Advertising and Marketing Ltd. Sti., Google International LLC, Google LLC, Google Ireland Ltd., and Alphabet Inc., had restricted access to its YouTube ad inventory and unfairly advantaged its own supply-side platform (SSP).

Key findings of the investigation:

Restricted YouTube ad inventory: Google allowed access to YouTube's advertising inventory only through its own demand-side platforms (DSPs).
Unfair advantage for Google SSP: Google used its dominance in the publisher ad server services market to favor its SSP over competitors.
Impact on competition: These practices were deemed to hinder competitors' operations and violate Article 6 of the Law on Protection of Competition (4054).

A phone screen with Google Ads on it. (X Photo)

Penalty and compliance requirements for Google

The board levied an administrative fine of ?2.61 billion on Google and set compliance obligations to ensure fair competition:

Equal access: Google must provide third-party platforms with conditions no less favorable than those offered to its own services.
Deadline: Google has six months to comply. Failure to meet the requirements will result in daily fines.

Appeal and global context

Google has the option to appeal the ruling within 60 days to Ankara Administrative Courts.

This decision follows a global trend of increased scrutiny of Google's business practices:

In the U.S., a federal judge ruled that Google's search engine constitutes an illegal monopoly.
European regulators recently investigated Google's advertising partnership with Meta.
Earlier this year, Türkiye's Competition Authority fined Google ?482 million over its hotel search service.

December 14, 2024 09:51 AM GMT+03:00