The UK’s competition regulator is proposing to loosen Google’s control of its search engine in the first application of Britain’s tough new digital market rules.
The Competition and Markets Authority said on Tuesday that Google could be required to implement new “fair ranking” measures in its search results and give publishers more control over how it uses their content, including in output generated by artificial intelligence.
The CMA said it was minded to hand Google “strategic market status”—a label introduced under new digital market laws this year—in light of its dominant position in search and search advertising, which would require the tech giant to abide by a number of such conduct rules. A final decision will be made by October following a public consultation.
The Big Tech giant became the first company to be targeted under strict new UK digital laws that require businesses with an outsized impact in certain digital markets to be granted the SMS label and subjected to specific rules.
The CMA’s investigation, which was opened in January, examined whether Google’s position in search and advertising was “delivering good outcomes” for consumers and businesses in the UK.
“Google is the world’s leading search tool and plays an important role in all our lives, with the average person in the UK making five to 10 searches a day,” said Sarah Cardell, the CMA’s chief executive. “Our investigation so far suggests there are ways to make these markets more open, competitive and innovative.”