UK regulator proposes loosening Google’s control of its search engine

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The UK’s competition regulator is proposing to loosen Google’s control of its search engine in the first application of Britain’s tough new digital market rules.

The Competition and Markets Authority said on Tuesday that Google could be required to implement new “fair ranking” measures in its search results and give publishers more control over how it uses their content, including in output generated by artificial intelligence.

The CMA said it was minded to hand Google “strategic market status” — a label introduced under new digital market laws this year — in light of its dominant position in search and search advertising, which would require the tech giant to abide by a number of such conduct rules. A final decision will be made by October following a public consultation.

The Big Tech giant became the first company to be targeted under strict new UK digital laws that require businesses with an outsized impact in certain digital markets to be granted the SMS label and subjected to specific rules.

The CMA’s investigation, which was opened in January, examined whether Google’s position in search and advertising is “delivering good outcomes” for consumers and businesses in the UK.

“Google is the world’s leading search tool and plays an important role in all our lives, with the average person in the UK making 5 to 10 searches a day,” said Sarah Cardell, the CMA’s chief executive. “Our investigation so far suggests there are ways to make these markets more open, competitive and innovative.”

Other conduct rules that the CMA is considering include requirements in how it ranks its search results and for Google’s distribution partners such as Apple. The company may also be required to offer “choice screens” to help consumers switch more easily between search providers instead of offering the world’s most used search engine by default.

The CMA said Alphabet-owned Google’s dominance made the cost of search advertising “higher than would be expected” in a more competitive market.

Google on Tuesday slammed the proposals as “broad and unfocused” and said they could threaten the UK’s access to its latest products and services.

Oliver Bethell, Google’s senior director for competition, warned that “punitive regulations” could change how quickly Google launches new products in the UK.

“Proportionate, evidence-based regulation will be essential to preventing the CMA’s road map from becoming a roadblock to growth in the UK,” he added.

Bethell’s warning of the potential impact of any regulations on the wider UK economy comes after the government explicitly mandated the CMA to focus on supporting growth and investment while minimising uncertainty for businesses.

Google said last year that it planned to invest $1bn in a huge new data centre just outside London.

The CMA’s probe comes after Google lost a pair of historic US antitrust cases over its dominance of search and its lucrative advertising business.