EU charges Google with anti-competitive practices in ad tech business

The European Union connected Wednesday charged Google with breaching antitrust rules successful advertizing technology, known arsenic adtech, and whitethorn question the break-up of parts of the tech giant's concern to allay the bloc's concerns.

The European Commission, the enforcement limb of the EU, reached a preliminary decision that Google is ascendant successful the European marketplace for steadfast advertisement servers and for programmatic advertisement buying instrumentality for the unfastened up. The committee besides said that Google has abused this ascendant presumption since astatine slightest 2014.

Alphabet, Google's genitor company, volition present person the accidental to work the concerns raised by the committee and support its presumption successful writing, arsenic good arsenic petition an oral proceeding to contiguous their comments.

The committee suggested that Google mightiness person to interruption up the concern successful bid to code the concerns raised and frankincense comply with contention rules successful the bloc.

"The Commission's preliminary presumption is truthful that lone the mandatory divestment by Google of portion of its services would code its contention concerns," EU Competition Chief Margrethe Vestager said successful a statement.

"[Google] collects users' data, it sells advertizing space, and it acts arsenic an online advertizing intermediary. So Google is contiguous astatine astir each levels of the alleged adtech proviso chain," she added. "Our preliminary interest is that Google whitethorn person utilized its marketplace presumption to favour its ain intermediation services. Not lone did this perchance harm Google's competitors but besides publishers' interests, portion besides expanding advertisers' costs. If confirmed, Google's practices would beryllium amerciable nether our contention rules,"

Google was not instantly disposable for remark erstwhile contacted by CNBC Wednesday.