Fresh from revealing it is under investigation in Argentina and Korea, Google’s search business is set to face a new probe with India’s Competition Commission of India (CCI) ready to put it under the microscope.
Sources quoted by Business Today claim that the organisation has been asked to look into potential anti-competitive practices, following a complaint by a Web services company that runs more than 400 portals.
Consim Info is alleging that Google “abused its dominance by engaging in discriminatory and retaliatory practices relating to AdWords” for its marriage-related website Bharatmatrimony.com. The CCI sources claim to have found “prima facie evidence” to support the accusations, lodged in February, which could kickstart a 60-day investigation.
In addition to the ongoing investigations in Korea and Argentina, Google’s search engine was the center of a legal ruling in Australia in April. A federal court found the company guilty of allowing ‘deceptive’ ads to be placed on its search site in 2006 and 2007, for which it was fined and told to implement a “compliance program.”
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A Google spokesperson told Business Today, “we have not received any communication and therefore we are unable to comment on it”, and the company declined to provide further comment when contacted by The Next Web.
Google is under pressure in a separate legal issue in India, which sees it and Facebook accused of failing to adequately manage “objectionable content” in the country. The case was adjourned last week and the companies will have to wait until August before they are able to petition against it.
Update: Here’s Google’s response in fill.
Though competition is always a click away – we understand that with success comes scrutiny. We have not received any communication from the CCI, but we’re always happy to answer questions about our business, and we’re confident that our products are compliant with competition law in India.
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