CCI Orders Probe Into Google’s Online Display Advertising Practices

In a major blow to Google, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has ordered a probe into the big tech major’s alleged abuse of dominance in the online display advertising services market via its Google AdTech Stack.

In an order dated August 1, the competition watchdog clubbed a complaint pertaining to Google’s alleged anti-competitive practices in the online display ad services market with four other related cases against the big tech major.

“The DG (director general) is directed to investigate the various alleged practices of Google in online display advertising services and/ or AdTech intermediation services and submit a consolidated investigation report in the matters accordingly,” read the order. 

The complaint was filed by industry body Alliance of Digital India Foundation (ADIF), which counts startups like Paytm, Matrimony.com, TrulyMadly, among others, as its members. 

“We are reviewing the CCI’s orders. We welcome the CCI’s decision to dismiss one part of the complaint. We remain confident that our ongoing work with the CCI will affirm that Google’s advertising practices have consistently benefited advertisers, publishers, and users, and are fully compliant with competition law,” said a Google spokesperson.

The order came on the same day as the CCI, in a separate matter, ordered the closure of a case related to Google’s alleged abuse of dominance in the online search advertising services market. 

For context, there are two forms of digital advertising – online search advertising and online display advertising. While the former pertains to online ads on search engine page results, the latter refers to placement of visual ads (banners, images, videos) on websites and mobile apps. 

The relief for Google came in online search advertising space while the latest probe has been launched in the online digital advertising space. Both the cases stemmed from a complaint filed by the AIDF against the big tech major. 

Effectively, the CCI had split the ADIF complaint into three separate sub-cases – examining Google’s online display advertising services through its AdTech Stack, its online search advertising services through Google Ads policies and probing allegations that the big tech major used its search dominance to increase profits from the online search advertising market.

The industry body, in its complaint, alleged that Google’s dominance in the online advertisement markets had led to an anti-competitive environment, leading to “nascent AdTech competitors being driven out of the market”.

The ADIF also alleged that the absence of an alternative and the dependence of advertisers and publishers on Google’s advertising platform led to the tech giant asserting its dominance over advertisers and publishers by imposing “exploitative prices”, forcing unfair conditions, not maintaining any transparency, among others. 

Meanwhile, Google, in its submission before the CCI, refuted all allegations of the ADIF. 

The CCI order also noted that the ADIF argued that online display advertising could not be substituted with any other form of advertising, adding that Google was leveraging its dominant position in this market.