Google has been sued for potential damages worth up to £5 billion ($6.6 billion) in the United Kingdom (UK) over accusations of abusing its dominance in the online search market.
The class action lawsuit was filed on Wednesday, with the Competition Appeal Tribunal claiming that the search engine giant abused its dominant position to impede rival search engines and lifting itself as the only search engine within reach for online search advertising.
Or Brook, who is a competition law academic, is leading the class action lawsuit against Google. She is representing a large number of British organisations that used Google’s online advertising services from January 1, 2011, up until the complaint’s filing.
“Today, UK businesses and organisations, big or small, have almost no choice but to use Google ads to advertise their products and services,” Brook said on Tuesday. “Regulators around the world have described Google as a monopoly and securing a spot on Google’s top pages is essential for visibility.”
The law academic says that Google has been leveraging its dominance in the overall search and online advertising market to overcharge advertisers. The case is about holding Google to account for its unlawful practices on behalf of British advertisers who have been charged in excess, she adds.
Google, on the other hand, has called the case “opportunistic and speculative”, saying that it will fight the allegations “vigorously”. A company spokesperson says, “Consumers and advertisers use Google because it helpful, not because there are no alternatives.”
In 2018, Google was fined $4.9 billion by the European Union (EU) for forcing smartphone manufacturers to pre-install Chrome and Search. Google has since been fighting the penalty.
