German Cartel Office Sets Crosshairs on Google

The Bundeskartellamt, German competition authority, said it was examining Google's use of personal data and its News Showcase product under its new powers to regulate internet companies. The regulator declared that the American company fell under an extended remit to control the actions of large digital players.

Cartel office indicated following a probe into Alphabet and subsidiary Google, the two were subject to extended abuse controls added to Germany’s competition laws in 2021. The regulator added as a result it had already extended an assessment of the company’s use of personal data and showcase of news. "The Federal Cartel Office can now tackle concrete forms of behavior that harm competition," office president Andreas Mundt said. "We have already started looking more intensively at Google's processing of personal data and the topic of Google News Showcase.

To fall under the rules businesses must be determined to have paramount significance across markets, with the authority pointing to Google’s dominant position across search alongside significant strength in other areas through Android, YouTube, and advertising services. “The company has an economic position of power which gives rise to a scope of action across markets that is insufficiently controlled by competition“, the regulator said, indicating it could reap competitive advantage from data derived from across its services.