Japan's antitrust watchdog has found Google guilty of violating the country's laws related to search engines, according to a report by Nikkei.

The Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) made the announcement on December 22, as reported by Nikkei. The JFTC is responsible for enforcing Japan's competition law and ensuring that companies operate fairly in the market.

According to the report, Google was found to have violated Japan's laws related to search engines through a series of investigations conducted by the JFTC between 2019 and 2022. The investigation focused on Google's behavior in its domestic search engine business, including its practices for ranking search results and the way it displayed advertisements.

The JFTC found that Google had engaged in anti-competitive conduct by favoring certain content providers over others when displaying search results. This practice, known as "search manipulation," can be detrimental to smaller companies that rely on search engines to reach their customers.

Google was also accused of using its dominant position in the Japanese search engine market to suppress competition from other players. The JFTC found evidence that Google had engaged in various tactics to limit the ability of competitors to appear at the top of search results, including manipulating the way it displays advertisements and ranking search results based on certain criteria.

The investigation was launched after complaints were filed by several Japanese companies that claimed they were being unfairly excluded from appearing at the top of search results. These companies argued that Google's practices were harming their business and limiting competition in the market.

As a result of its findings, the JFTC has ordered Google to take corrective action to address its anti-competitive conduct. The order requires Google to implement measures to prevent it from favoring certain content providers over others when displaying search results, as well as to ensure that it is treating competitors fairly in terms of advertising and ranking.

The decision by the JFTC marks a significant development for antitrust regulators in Japan, who have been increasingly focusing on the country's tech giants in recent years. The ruling also highlights the growing importance of competition law in regulating the digital economy, as companies continue to grow their online presence and compete more fiercely in new markets.

The implications of this decision will likely be felt beyond Japan, however. As one of the world's largest search engines, Google is a global player that operates in many different countries around the world. The JFTC's order may set a precedent for antitrust regulators elsewhere to investigate similar practices by Google and other tech giants.

Overall, the JFTC's decision represents an important step forward for competition law enforcement in Japan and highlights the need for companies like Google to operate fairly and compete on their merits. As the digital economy continues to grow and evolve, it is likely that antitrust regulators will continue to play a critical role in ensuring that companies like Google are held accountable for their actions.

• Japan Fair Trade
• Fair Trade Commission
• Google
• JFTC
• search results