All articles tagged with #competition regulation
Google was fined €2.95 billion ($3.45 billion) by the EU for anti-competitive practices in its adtech business, accused of favoring its own services and abusing market power since 2014. The EU ordered Google to cease self-preferencing and address conflicts of interest, with the company planning to challenge the decision in court. This is part of a long-standing regulatory battle between Google and EU authorities.
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority is considering designating Google as a 'strategic market' entity, which would require the company to provide alternative search options, ensure fair ranking of results, and give publishers more control over their content, aiming to increase competition and consumer choice in the UK search market.
Meta is preparing to comply with the Digital Markets Act (DMA) in the European Union by offering users in the region more control over their data. The company plans to allow EU users to deny cross-site tracking and data combination between its core platform services, in accordance with the DMA's requirements. However, some choices come with trade-offs, such as limiting functionality for users who opt out of data combination. The DMA aims to prevent tech giants from using their market dominance to force users to accept profiling, with potential fines of up to 10% of global annual turnover for violations.
Big tech companies, including Meta (formerly Facebook), TikTok, Amazon, Google, and Apple, have been accumulating billions of dollars in fines for various violations such as price fixing, antitrust abuses, and data misuse. However, many of these fines remain unpaid for years as the companies appeal the decisions. Critics argue that financial penalties alone are insufficient to deter bad behavior and call for more drastic action, such as competition regulators stepping in to halt mergers and break up the companies. Uneven application of rules and lenient appeals processes contribute to the problem, while activists emphasize the need for corrective measures beyond fines.