The Canadian Competition Bureau is suing Google for alleged anti-competitive behavior in the online advertising.
The antitrust authority alleges that Google has illegally tied two advertising tools to maintain its supremacy and that it is using its dominant position to destroy competition.
The agency said it had filed an application with the Competition Tribunal, an independent court-like body, that would require Google to sell two of its advertising tools.
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Google , for its part, denies the accusations. It maintains that in reality there is intense competition and that ad buyers and sellers have many options available to them.
“The advertising technology toolswe use help websites and apps fund their content and enable businesses of all sizes to effectively reach new customers,” said Dan Taylor, a Google executive.
This case focuses on online advertisements – ads that appear to users while they visit other websites.
Digital ad inventory is often bought and sold through automated auctions, using digital platforms. These platforms are known as ad tech tools, while the entire set of tools is known as an ad tech stack.
Canada's antitrust authority found that Google had "abused its dominant position" as the largest ad tech stack in the country.
See also: EU: Fine on Apple for antitrust practices in the App Store?
"Through a series of calculated decisions, taken over many years, Google has excluded competitors and established itself in online advertising," the Competition Office said.
“The near-absolute control of ad-tech [software] by Google is the result of premeditated behavior and is not due to superior performance or any random event”.
The agency said it was asking the Competition Tribunal to force Google to sell two of its ad tech tools and pay a fine of up to 3% of its global revenue to comply with Canada's competition laws.
Google has 45 days to submit its response to the court.
The case comes a week after the US Justice Department and a group of states asked Google to sell its Chrome browserto end the company's monopoly on online search.
See also: FTC has launched an antitrust investigation into Microsoft
Antitrust laws are designed to promote fair competition and prevent monopolistic practices.
Enforcing these laws is essential to maintaining a healthy market environment where innovation can thrive, while also protecting consumers.
The Google investigation into online advertising reflects regulators' ongoing efforts to hold big tech companies for their actions. There have been a number of similar cases in Europe recently, involving companies such as Google, Facebook and Amazon. The companies are facing antitrust investigations and fines from various regulators.
Source: www.yahoo.com
