Google has been fined $14.58 million by the Turkish competition regulator over antitrust practices related to hotel searches in the country.
The fine, imposed on the search engine giant on Monday, came in response to what the watchdog said was Google’s failure to abide by regulatory obligations related to hotel searches on the internet. Google’s dominance over online search for hotels in the country impeded fair competition with other local search engines, according to the competition board.
“Despite Google’s dominant position in the general search services market, it makes it difficult for competitors to operate and distorts competition in the local search services and accommodation price comparison services markets by preventing rival local search sites from entering its service,” the regulator said in a written statement, as carried by Turkish news outlet Hürriyet Daily News.
In May, the competition watchdog fined Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, $37.2 million by the Turkish competition in conclusion of two separate investigations into the tech conglomerate’s data-sharing practices. One of the inquiries focused on Meta’s linking of its newly launched app Threads (X’s rival) and Instagram.
Consequently, Meta ceased the operations of Threads in the country temporarily, stating it had no other choice than complying with the interim order that required a halt to data sharing between the two platforms.
According to the changes sought by the regulator, users in the country would have the choice to consent to the synchronisation of their personal data across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. In addition, they will be notified about how their data will be used.
