Why Germany surrounds Google
In Germany, the Antitrust has opened an investigation to understand whether Google Germany, Google Ireland and the parent company Alphabet are perpetuating anti-competitive practices.
Trouble ahead for Big G in Germany.
The German antitrust authority has initiated an investigation into Google Germany, Google Ireland and their parent company Alphabet for alleged abuse of a dominant position on the market. The investigation, the authority said, will have to verify, among other things, whether the tech giant offers enough freedom of choice to users on the use of their data.
Google said people use its services because they are useful, not because they are forced to or because they can't find alternatives.
“We give people easy control over how their information is used. And we limit the use of personal information, ”said Google spokesman Ralf Bremer, adding that the Mountain View company will assist the authority with its requests.
The regulator has made use of enhanced powers – granted under recent reforms of German competition laws – to also investigate their data practices on Facebook and Amazon.
The investigation in Germany comes two weeks after the Italian antitrust authority fined Google with a € 102.8 million fine for not allowing EnelX to develop a version of its JuicePass app.
Without forgetting the maxi fine of 1.49 billion euros imposed on Google by the European Union in 2019 for violating competition.
All the details.
THE INVESTIGATION STARTED BY THE GERMAN ANTITRUST
The Bundeskartellamt, the Bonn-based antitrust authority, said the investigation will consider whether the tech giant offers users sufficient choice in how to use their data in the wide range of digital services it provides.
“With its consolidated access to competitor-relevant data, Google has a strategic advantage,” President Andreas Mundt said in a statement.
He then added that "Google's business model is fundamentally based on the processing of its users' data."
“We will analyze very carefully the terms under which user data is processed. "A key question in this context is whether consumers wishing to use Google's services have sufficient choice in how Google will use their data."
FARO ON YOUTUBE, MAPS, ANDROID AND CHROME
Specifically, the German regulator will examine whether Google's range of digital services – ranging from the search engine to YouTube, from Maps to its Android smartphone operating system and Chrome browser – gives the Mountain View giant a dominant position. on all markets.
THE GOOGLE REPLY
“People choose Google because they find it useful, not because they are forced to or because they have no alternative. German users have many online alternatives available. And we provide them with simple control tools to manage their information and limit the use of personal data. We are fully available to work together with the German authority. We will gladly answer their questions on this matter, ”commented a Google spokesperson.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/innovazione/perche-la-germania-accerchia-google/ on Wed, 26 May 2021 13:13:34 +0000.