- Japan’s competition watchdog, the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC), has initiated an investigation into Google for potential antitrust violations in the web search services sector.
- The JFTC’s probe will focus on whether Google’s practices, including returning a portion of its revenues to Android smartphone manufacturers with the condition that they do not install rival search engines, have violated Japan’s Antimonopoly Act.
- This move by the JFTC is consistent with similar actions taken by antitrust regulators in the European Union, the United States, and other major economies, indicating a global scrutiny of Google’s competitive practices.
- The investigation will assess whether Google’s behavior in the web search and smartphone markets is anticompetitive and breaches antitrust laws in Japan.
- The outcome of this investigation could lead to changes in Google’s operations and practices in the Japanese market, potentially impacting its market dominance.
- This investigation is part of a broader trend of increased regulatory scrutiny on tech giants and their competitive practices worldwide.