UK Launches Probe into Dominance of Google Search Engine Market

Britain’s competition watchdog has launched an investigation into Google’s dominant position in the Search Engine market and its impacts on consumers and businesses.

According to a statement by the the Competition and Markets Authority, the investigation could lead to the US tech giant being handed “strategic market status”, subjecting it to special requirements under new UK regulations.

The CMA will probe whether “Google is using its position to prevent innovation by others” in the search engine market and whether it gives “self-preference” to its own services.

The investigation will assess Google’s position in search and search advertising services and how this impacts consumers and businesses including advertisers, news publishers, and rival search engines.

It will also look into “potential exploitative conduct” including investigating the collection and use of large quantities of consumer data without informed consent.

Under the UK’s tougher new regulation that came into force this year, the watchdog has been given more powers to develop and enforce conduct requirements on companies to prevent anti-competitive behaviour in digital markets.

“Millions of people and businesses across the UK rely on Google’s search and advertising services — with 90 percent of searches happening on their platform and more than 200,000 UK businesses advertising there,” CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell said in the statement.

“That’s why it’s so important to ensure these services are delivering good outcomes for people and businesses and that there is a level playing field,” she added.

The probe is in its preliminary stages with the CMA first inviting comments to determine the scope of the investigation.

The probe into Google’s search services marks the first SMS designation investigations under the new digital markets competition regime, which came into force on January 1, 2025.

Under the regime, the CMA may designate firms with SMS in relation to a particular digital activity. Once designated, the authority can impose conduct requirements or propose pro-competition interventions to achieve positive outcomes for UK consumers and businesses.

In Google’s case, the regulator will assess how the competition is working and if Google is using its position to self-preference its own services or prevent innovation by others.

The statutory deadline for this investigation is October 13, 2025.

The CMA’s move comes at a time when other authorities around the world, including in the US, Europe and Australia, are also taking a close look at Google’s search activities.

Back in November, the US Department of Justice proposed critical steps over concerns of Google’s (GOOG) (GOOGL) monopolistic practices, seeking the sale of its Chrome web browser.