Feed: Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics
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Title: UK proposes greater regulation for Google's search practices

Date: Tue, 24 Jun 2025 12:28:25 +0000
Link: https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/uk-proposes...

The UK might introduce new regulations for Google. The country's Competition
and Markets Authority (CMA) has proposed designating the company's search
services with "strategic market status" (SMS). In doing so, the regulatory
body could direct Google to create fairer business rankings on search, for
instance.

The CMA launched an antitrust investigation into Google Search in January ΓÇö
its first probe under the UK's Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers
(DMCC) Act. Concerns include search advertising costing more than in a
competitive market, minimal transparency on ranking search results and
Google's vast access to websites and historical searches. There's also the
issue of publishers getting fair terms and control over their content's use
in search and AI-generated summaries.

"Google search has delivered tremendous benefits ΓÇö but our investigation so
far suggests there are ways to make these markets more open, competitive and
innovative." Sarah Cardell, Chief Executive of the CMA, said in a statement.
A final decision on Google's SMS designation will come by October 13.

It would also apply to AI-based search features, but not Gemini AI Assistant
ΓÇö though the CMA states this is subject to change.

If the labeling goes ahead then the CMA will likely enact "early priorities"
like the following:

Requiring choice screens for users to access different search providers

Ensuring fair ranking principles for businesses appearing on Google search

More transparency and control for publishers whose content appears in search
results

Portability of consumer search data to support innovation in new products and
services

These points stand as a roadmap for how CMA plans to handle any initial
designation period for an SMS. "These targeted and proportionate actions
would give UK businesses and consumers more choice and control over how they
interact with GoogleΓÇÖs search services ΓÇö as well as unlocking greater
opportunities for innovation across the UK tech sector and broader economy,"
Cardell stated. The CMA aims to provide additional actions to tackle more
complex issues beginning in early 2026.

The SMS designation doesn't imply Google has engaged in anti-competitive
actions. Parties interested in Google's status can provide their views on the
proposal directly to the CMA.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-
tech/uk-proposes-greater-regulation-for-googles-search-practices-
122825066.html?src=rss

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