Unexpected Move
China’s State Administration for Market Regulation has announced that it will conduct an antitrust investigation into Google following allegations that the company violated local laws.
This move comes amid China’s decision to impose additional tariffs on certain imports from the U.S. Specifically, the Ministry of Finance stated that a 15% tariff would be applied to coal and liquefied natural gas from the U.S., starting from February 10. Additionally, a higher 10% tariff will be imposed on crude oil, agricultural equipment, and some types of imported vehicles and trucks from the U.S.
The investigation of Google is surprising given that the company withdrew from the country in 2010 due to its inability to comply with government content censorship requirements.
Google faces antitrust investigation in China despite long withdrawal – 1Google faces antitrust investigation in China despite no longer operating there (Image: Getty).
Currently, Google services such as search, maps, YouTube, and Google Play are inaccessible in mainland China. However, Google still supports Chinese businesses in advertising on its platforms abroad.
Despite withdrawing from mainland China, Google continues to operate in Hong Kong through the domain Google.com.hk, but mainland Chinese users cannot access this site.
Many market analysts believe this investigation could be a retaliatory move by China in response to the U.S.’s investigation of DeepSeek, an AI tool originating from China. It is expected that the investigation will conclude without any penalties for Google.
In addition to Google, several other major tech companies have been banned from operating in China due to the strict internet censorship policies, including Meta, X (formerly Twitter), Reddit, LinkedIn, and Flickr.
Even TikTok, a product of Chinese company ByteDance, is banned in China, with the domestic version Douyin taking its place.
Close Scrutiny in Many Countries
While the investigation in China may not cause significant harm to Google, the company is also under close scrutiny from regulators in many other countries, including the U.S.
Last August, Google lost a lawsuit filed by the U.S. government in 2020, which accused the company of monopolizing the internet search market.
Following the verdict, the U.S. Department of Justice demanded that Google divest or spin off its Chrome browser into a separate entity. The department also argued that Google should not enter into exclusive agreements with third parties like Apple or Samsung.
Google is also under investigation by the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority regarding whether the company holds a dominant position and engages in unfair competition in the internet search and online advertising markets.
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