CCI orders probe into Google’s practices in online display ad market

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has ordered an investigation into the alleged breach of antitrust rules by Google in the online display advertising services market through Google AdTech Stack.

The order dated August 1 comes on a day when the regulator, in a separate matter, granted relief to Google and closed a case pertaining to its alleged abuse of dominance in the online search advertising services market through Google Ads Policies.

Both these matters stemmed from the complaint filed by the Alliance of Digital India Foundation (ADIF) — a body that represents start-ups and app developers — against Google.

ET has reviewed both the regulatory orders.

The Commission has now decided to club the AIDF complaint against Google’s practices in the online display ad services market with related cases against the tech major where a regulatory probe is in progress, as the allegations are similar in nature.

There are two forms of digital advertising–online search advertising and online display advertising.

“The DG (director general) is directed to investigate the various alleged practices of Google in Online Display Advertising services and/ or AdTech intermediation services and submit a consolidated investigation report in the matters accordingly,” it said in the order.

ADIF had alleged that Google’s dominance in the online advertisement markets has led to an anti-competitive environment, as the “nascent AdTech competitors are being driven out of the market”.

In the absence of an effective alternative to Google’s services, advertisers and publishers are dependent on it. This, ADIF has alleged, has helped the tech giant assert its dominance over advertisers and publishers by imposing “exploitative prices”, forcing unfair conditions, not maintaining any transparency, among others. Google takes a nearly 35% cut from the earnings from digital advertisers, it has claimed.

For its part, Google has refuted all allegations of the start-up body in its submission with the regulator.

Case segregation

The regulator said it has segregated the AIDF allegations against Google into three sub-cases. The first sub-case deals with Google’s alleged abuse of dominance in the online display advertising services market through Google AdTech Stack.

The second one deals with accusations relating to the online search advertising services market through its Google Ads Policies.

The third sub-case will comprise the rest of the AIDF allegations against Google.

The Commission has now delivered orders in the first two of the three sub-cases. Google has got the breather only in the second sub-case.

The order shows ADIF has also contended that open online display advertising can’t be substituted with any other form of advertising. Google is in a dominant position in the online display advertising services. Google, however, disputes this assertion.

In this context, the Commission referred to its January 2022 order in a separate case involving the tech major. Given its global presence, it can be reasonably inferred that Google occupies a significant position in the market for online digital advertising intermediation services but a proper investigation would bring out these aspects in detail, the regulator had then, prima facie, observed.

_{Images are for reference only.Images and contents gathered automatic from google or 3rd party sources.All rights on the images and contents are with their legal original owners.}