Google under CCI scanner; faces up to $5-bn in fine

Internet search giant Google Inc is under anti-trust investigation by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for violation of fair trade practices and cold face up to $5-bn in penalties, if any violation of competition norms is established.

Under CCI's fair trade regulations, any violation of prescribed fair trade norms would attract penalties of up to 10 per cent of the three-year annual average turnover of the entity concerned. With annual revenues of $49.3 billion for the past three years, Google may face a maximum penalty of nearly $5 billion.

Google is alleged to be abusing its dominant position in the internet search engine space and the CCI has been investigating the case for over two years now.

Google has been under similar anti-trust probe in the US and the European Union, but has settled the cases under the settlement provision. In India, however, the competition regulations do not have provisions for the settlement process.

There is also no provision for withdrawing a complaint filed with the CCI.

After two years of investigation, the US antitrust watchdog is reported to have found that despite Google's dominance in the internet space, the company's services did not undermine competition.

CCI referred the case to its investigating wing Director General (DG) for a detailed probe. The DG is said to have collected comments from third-parties with regard to Google's practices and is likely to submit its report to CCI soon.

Google said it was "extending full cooperation" to the CCI in its investigation.

Besides fine, CCI may also direct the company, if found violating norms to alter its conduct in the market place and even prescribe structural changes or break up of dominant enterprises into smaller businesses.

Google is facing charges by advocacy group CUTS International and matrimonial website Matrimony.Com Private Ltd.

Google is alleged to be favouring its own products in search results and resorts to discrimination by favouring paid searches. It is also charges with imposing unfair and discriminatory conditions on 'AdWords' customers.

Last year, CCI chairman Ashok Chawla had said the complaint was that Google search engine favours the platforms which it wants to support.

"That is when you click on Google under a certain category, you will get the platforms where there is a tendency to put them in a certain order which may not be the fair and non-discriminatory manner.

"So, what is the software and what is the algorithmic search, (that is) what the investigation team is looking at," Chawla had said.

Google is also under investigation by Comision Nacional de Defensa de la Competencia in Argentina, the Taiwan Fair Trade Commission, Brazil's Council for Economic Defense and the Canadian Competition Bureau into certain business practices, according to a regulatory filing by the search giant.