The antitrust investigation initiated by the European Commission concerns the company Google. Authorities suspect that Google downranks news websites in search results if these resources host commercial or third-party content.
According to Reuters, this investigation is part of new EU legislation known as the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which regulates the operations of large digital platforms. Publishers who have filed complaints with the European Commission claim that after the introduction of Google's new policy to combat "site reputation abuse," their materials have become significantly less visible in search results.
The European Commission believes that such practices may negatively affect the visibility and revenues of news resources. In response to the accusations, Google asserts that the primary goal of the updated policy is to protect users from low-quality sites that publish sponsored content to boost their rankings.
If found guilty, Google could face a fine of up to 10% of the company's annual global turnover.
This is not the first antitrust case against Google; the corporation has previously faced fines from the European Commission for violations in advertising technology and search promotion.
