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Wednesday, May 10, 2023, at the Google campus in Mountain View, California.
CNN
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An organization representing more than 2,000 news publishers on Tuesday sent a letter to federal agencies launching an investigation into Google after the tech giant began removing links to California-based news organizations. asked to do so.
Google's move sparked an immediate backlash over a bill that would require tech companies to pay for news content.
The News/Media Alliance, which represents U.S. newspapers and online publications, has asked the Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission and the state of California to investigate whether Google violated any laws when it restricted the ability of some Californians. He announced that he had sent a letter to the Attorney General. Last week, I came across News's website from a Google search.
Google announced Friday that it has begun removing links to California news websites for some users in response to a bill that would require Google, Meta and others to pay news organizations for their content.Mountain The view-based search giant said it had begun a “test” to measure “the law's impact on our product experience.”
The letter warns federal and state authorities that Google's move violates the Lanham Act, the Sherman Antitrust Act, the Federal Trade Commission Act, as well as California's Unruh Civil Rights Act, the False Advertising and Misrepresentation Prohibition Act, and the California Antitrust Act. It called for an investigation into whether it violated state consumer privacy laws. , California's Unfair Competition Law (UCL).
“Google will ask questions like: How many Californians will be affected? How are Californians who will be denied access to news chosen? What publications will be affected? “We have not released any further details on how long this will last or whether access will be blocked completely or simply for content that Google specifically dislikes,” the letter states. . “Because of these unknowns, Google's unilateral decision to block Californians' access to news websites could be violated in a number of ways.” [various] law. ”
News/Media Alliance President and CEO Daniel Coffey said in a statement that Google has too much power.
“One company should not be allowed to control information so independently that it makes decisions that are detrimental to society, as Google did in California,” Coffey said. “We call on government agencies to take steps to address the various ways this activity may violate existing antitrust and other relevant laws.”
Google declined to comment on Tuesday.
