Japan’s Fair Trade Commission has ordered Google, a unit of Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), to cease certain business practices that are considered anti-competitive under the country’s Antimonopoly Act.
The watchdog announced the order on Tuesday, noting that Google violated regulations related to unfair trade practices. The agency initially opened its investigation on October 23, 2023, noting that it coordinated with foreign regulators that conducted a similar investigation into the company.
The core of the inquiry is Google’s arrangement with Android smartphone manufacturers. The company allegedly asked for priority placement of its search engine on mobile devices. This includes requirements for Google Search and Chrome pre-installation, as well as placing its icons on the default home screen. Manufacturers are also reportedly subject to changing Chrome’s default search settings.
Additionally, the commission accused Google of providing financial incentives to manufacturers and providing a share of advertising revenue for not preloading competitive search services. These protocols are said to be to ensure that Google maintains its advantage between general search features.
Google has not commented on the matter publicly.
This article first appears on Gurufocus.
