Google is closely being watched by Canada's Competition Bureau as the agency is inquiring into Google search engine and advertising practices.
The Competition Bureau of Canada has recently filed documents with the Federal Court of Canada asking Google Canada to provide detailed records of the company's search and advertising businesses. The agency believes that Google may be abusing its dominant position in the online search engine industry in Canada. The agency also says that it is investigating into the alleged anti-competitive practices by Google, which may have violated Canadian Laws.
The filed documents also say the Competition Bureau believes that Google may have manipulated search results to favor its own "vertical" services, such as Google News, over its competitors. The agency also says that the company's AdWords advertising service limits users from moving data to a rival platform.
Mark MacLachlan, a senior competition law officer with the Competition Bureau in Ottawa (Canada) wrote in the Section 11 request that the Commissioner has reason to believe that Google's purported practice of anti-competitive acts, carried on independently or on a combined basis, is having or likely to have prevented or lessened competition significantly in the search services and search advertising services market of Canada.
A Section 11 request enables the Competition Commissioner to inspect an individual or an organization believed to have relevant information on an inquiry. Under the request, the agency can also obtain documents or information that it deems relevant to an inquiry.
"The only thing I can confirm for now is that the bureau is currently conducting an investigation into alleged anti-competitive conduct by Google in relation to what you are stating here, and that we filed an application with the federal court under section 11 of the act to seek an order requiring Google to provide some information related to our investigation," said Gabrielle Tassé, a spokesperson for the Competition Bureau.
"We will work cooperatively with the Competition Bureau to answer any questions they may have," Leslie Church, Google Canada's head of communications and public affairs, said in an email to the Financial Post.
