UK slaps Google Search with special market status, making way for stricter regulations

Core Insights - The United Kingdom's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has designated Google with "strategic market status" in online search, allowing for stricter regulations to ensure fair competition [1][3] - Google has maintained a dominant position in the search market for over fifteen years, with competitors like Bing holding less than 5% market share [2][7] - The designation opens the possibility for further assessments and interventions regarding how Google operates its search services in the UK [3][4] Regulatory Scope - The designation specifically covers Google's search and online search advertising services, including AI-enabled features and the 'Discover' feed, but excludes the Google News app and search syndication services [4][5] - The CMA plans to review the scope of the designation concerning Google's Gemini AI assistant due to the evolving AI search market [5] Investigation Background - The CMA's investigation into Google began after the implementation of the UK's new digital markets competition regime in January, focusing on competition barriers and data usage [7] - Possible enforcement actions may include enabling choice screens for search engines, data portability, fair ranking of search results, and consent mechanisms for AI services [8] Google's Position - Google argues that any regulatory interventions could hinder innovation in the UK, which currently benefits from access to the latest products and services [9][10] - The company warns that proposed interventions could slow down product launches and potentially increase costs for consumers [11]