- Frustrated Barca fail to capitalise on Atletico La Liga slip
- More Kenyan police land in Haiti to bolster security mission
- McGlynn leads youthful USA to friendly win over Venezuela
- Barcelona stumble to frustrating Getafe draw in title setback
- Lukaku fires Napoli six points clear at Atalanta, Juve sink Milan
- Milder winds help LA firefighters as Trump vows to visit
- Arsenal must take blame for Villa fightback: Arteta
- Russian attacks kill six across Ukraine, Kyiv says
- Northampton, Leinster claim Champions Cup pool top spots
- Arsenal's title bid rocked by Villa fightback
- Superb Wirtz keeps Leverkusen on pace with leaders Bayern
- Thousands attend funeral of Liberian ex-warlord Prince Johnson
- Barcola strikes as PSG fight back to beat Lens
- Juventus into Serie A Champions League spots with victory over AC Milan
- Kane calls on Bayern to extend with pal Dier
- Kenya sends 217 more police officers to Haiti mission
- Nunez late show a significant moment for Liverpool, says Slot
- Northampton claim Champions Cup pool top spot with Munster thriller
- Leganes snap Liga leaders Atletico's winning streak
- Nunez rides to Liverpool's rescue, Newcastle thrashed by Bournemouth
- Leaders Liverpool strike late as Nunez sinks Brentford
- Trump launches his own meme coin, value soars
- Goretzka double helps Bayern go seven clear
- Hillier holds narrow Dubai lead as McIlroy eyes final-round surge
- Kluivert hat-trick helps Bournemouth snap Newcastle streak
- Odermatt continues Swiss roll with downhill win in Wengen
- French skier Giezendanner helicoptered off mountain after Wengen crash
- Over 55,000 displaced Sudanese return to southeastern state: IOM
- Noman and Sajid help Pakistan dominate West Indies in spin battle
- 'Great day' for happy couple Svitolina, Monfils at Australian Open
- Collins dumped out of Australian Open to boos
- Mbappe improving every game: Real Madrid coach Ancelotti
- Rome shoppers take pot luck in 'blind sale' of unclaimed packages
- Goggia charges to Cortina downhill triumph as Vonn flops
- Solskjaer returns to coaching with Turkish side Besiktas
- Telegram boss admits 'seriousness' of French allegations: source
- Sinner surges into Melbourne last 16 as Swiatek destroys Raducanu
- Noman and Sajid give Pakistan lead in spin-dominated first Test
- Sinner romps past Giron into Australian Open last 16
- Svitolina stuns Paolini for family fairytale at Australian Open
- Indian court finds man guilty in notorious hospital rape case
- Medvedev fined $76,000 for Australian Open antics
- S. Korea's president in court as investigators seek to extend detention
- Gaza ceasefire to begin Sunday morning, after Israeli approval
- Trump administration plans mass immigrant arrests next week: incoming official
- Russian attack kills four in Kyiv
- Teen qualifier Tien surges into Australian Open last 16
- Sinclair, Warrican spin Pakistan to 230 all out in first Test
- South Korea's president in court as investigators seek to extend detention
- Veteran Monfils stuns fourth seed Fritz at Australian Open
UK launches probe into dominance of Google search
Britain's competition watchdog Tuesday launched an investigation into Google's dominant position in the search engine market and its impacts on consumers and businesses.
The investigation could lead to the US tech giant being handed "strategic market status", subjecting it to special requirements under new UK regulations, the Competition and Markets Authority said in a statement.
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.
It will also look into "potential exploitative conduct" including investigating the collection and use of large quantities of consumer data without informed consent.
- Google engagement -
A Google spokesperson said the company will "continue to engage constructively with the CMA".
They added: "Google Search supports millions of UK businesses to grow by reaching customers in innovative ways. The CMA's announcement today recognises that."
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.
Potential requirements could include Google having to make the data it collects available to other businesses or giving publishers more control over how their data is used, the CMA said.
A similar tech competition law from the European Union, the Digital Markets Act, carries hefty financial penalities for giants like Apple, Google and Meta in the event of infringements.
"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 firstly inviting comments to determine the scope of the investigation.
It aims to reach a final outcome on the probe by October.
Google is also fighting an antitrust crackdown in the United States after the Department of Justice asked a federal court in November to order it to sell its widely used Chrome browser.
The DOJ also asked the court to ban deals for Google to be the default search engine on smartphones and prevent it from exploiting its Android mobile operating system.
E.Borba--PC