Alphabet's Google is confronted with a £5-billion class action lawsuit in Britain that claims the company has abused its dominant position in the online search industry. The competition claim, filed at the Competition Appeal Tribunal, accuses Google of hindering competition by pre-installing its services on devices and paying Apple to be the default search engine on iPhones. The lawsuit asserts that Google has overcharged advertisers as a result of its monopolistic practices. Google disputes the claims, asserting that it will defend itself vigorously against what it calls a speculative case.
Britain's antitrust regulator launched an investigation into Google's search services, including their impact on advertising markets, in January.
The claim, filed by competition law expert Or Brook, alleges Google ensured its search engine had better functionality and more features for Google's own advertising offering.
Brook stated that businesses had almost no choice but to use Google ads to advertise their products and services, as Google has been described as a monopoly.
Google's spokesperson stated that the company will vigorously argue against the case, calling it 'yet another speculative and opportunistic case'.
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