Latest news with #bigtech

UK plans to increase control over Google in search

Yahoo

5 days ago

Business
Yahoo

UK plans to increase control over Google in search

STORY: Britain's competition regulator on Tuesday (June 24) said it was proposing to designate Google with "strategic market status". That means the regulator will get greater control over how the U.S. tech giant operates search services. The Competition and Markets Authority said the designation is the first proposed under its new big tech regime. And would enable it to force Google to ensure fairer ranking for businesses appearing on Google search. It also proposed making it easier for users to access rival search services. And control for publishers whose content appeared in search results. It added that Google should also make its data more portable to help new businesses bring innovative products to market. Google will be the first company designated since the regulator gained new powers this year. And the move could be implemented in October. Google accounts for more than 90% of searches in Britain. And the CMA says it's set out a roadmap of future action against the firm. Google said the move could have significant implications for businesses and consumers in Britain. The tech giant added that the CMA's considerations were broad and unfocused.

Google fights monopoly inquiry with attack on UK ‘roadblock to growth'

Yahoo

5 days ago

Business
Yahoo

Google fights monopoly inquiry with attack on UK ‘roadblock to growth'

Google has attacked Britain's competition watchdog after it unveiled a sweeping crackdown on the tech giant's search engine. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on Tuesday concluded that Google's search division was too dominant, labelling it as having 'strategic market status'. It prompted a swift response from the Silicon Valley giant, which warned that 'punitive regulations' could delay the launch of its latest innovations in Britain and said the CMA's approach risked becoming a 'roadblock to growth in the UK'. The CMA proposed a series of measures aimed at loosening Google's hold over the internet. These included providing extra choice for users between search products and clear attribution for publishers when their content is used to generate answers using artificial intelligence (AI). It also said it would consider whether news publishers should be paid for how their content is used by Google, although it delayed this decision to next year. Oliver Bethell, the senior director of competition at Google, said: 'The UK has historically benefitted from early access to our latest innovations, but punitive regulations could change that. 'Proportionate, evidence-based regulation will be essential to preventing the CMA's roadmap from becoming a roadblock to growth in the UK.' A source close to the investigation suggested that the CMA was not in 'lockstep' with the Government and its growth agenda. The CMA's crackdown on 'big tech' has clashed with Labour's push to cut red tape and make Britain a more attractive place to invest. In January, Marcus Bokkerink, the CMA's chairman, was forced out by ministers over concerns the regulator was not aligned with Labour's efforts to boost growth. In a speech in December, Sir Keir Starmer took aim at 'the regulators, blockers and bureaucrats' whom he said were hurting the UK economy. On Tuesday, the CMA said its planned measures would 'help unlock broader growth, investment and innovation in the UK tech sector and wider economy'. It will make its final decision on its designation of Google in October. Google search accounts for more than 90pc of all queries in the UK, far eclipsing rivals like Microsoft's Bing and new services such as OpenAI's ChatGPT. The average Briton makes between five and 10 Google searches per day. For years, news groups, rival technology companies, online retailers and travel providers have warned that Google's dominance of the internet has distorted markets and threatened their businesses – prompting competition scrutiny around the world. The CMA's findings are its first under new powers brought in this year, providing it with wide-ranging authority to demand tech giants change how their products work, hit them with fines, or even break them up. The watchdog said it would include Google's AI search tools, such as AI Overviews, within its crackdown, although not its standalone AI app, called Gemini. Publishers have warned that Google's AI Overviews is diverting traffic from their websites. The CMA said it could force Google to show rival search engine products and AI tools on phones or within its Chrome web browser. Sarah Cardell, the chief executive of the CMA, said: 'Google search has delivered tremendous benefits – but our investigation so far suggests there are ways to make these markets more open, competitive and innovative.'

Canada won't pause digital services tax despite pressure from U.S., finance minister says

National Post

20-06-2025

Business
National Post

Canada won't pause digital services tax despite pressure from U.S., finance minister says

OTTAWA — Canada won't put a hold on the digital services tax on big tech companies set to take effect on June 30, the finance minister said Thursday. Article content Article content Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said Thursday the legislation was passed by Parliament and Canada is 'going ahead' with the tax. Article content Article content 'The (digital services tax) is in force and it's going to be applied,' he told reporters before a cabinet meeting on Parliament Hill. Article content Article content It will apply retroactively, leaving U.S. companies with a $2 billion US bill due at the end of the month. A June 11 letter signed by 21 members of Congress said U.S. companies will pay 90 per cent of the revenue Canada will collect from the tax. Article content Canadian and U.S. business groups, organizations representing U.S. tech giants and American members of Congress have all signed letters in recent weeks calling for the tax to be eliminated or paused. Article content It's set to take effect just weeks before a deadline Canada and the U.S. have set for coming up with a new trade deal, following months of trade conflict between the two countries. Article content Rick Tachuk, president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Canada, said the plan to go ahead with the tax 'undercuts those talks and risks derailing the agreement.' Article content Article content 'A retroactive tax like the DST, weeks before a new deal is supposed to be done, isn't a bargaining chip. It would likely be viewed as a provocation,' he said in an emailed statement. Article content Article content The Canadian Chamber of Commerce and other organizations have warned retaliatory measures in a U.S. spending and tax bill could hit Canadians' pension funds and investments. Article content Champagne said Canada isn't the only country that could be affected by those retaliatory measures. Article content David Pierce, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce's vice-president of government relations, said in an earlier interview his organization fears Canada could 'aggravate an already very tricky trade discussion with the Americans' if it goes ahead with the tax and the retroactive payment requirement. Article content Matthew Holmes, the chamber's executive vice-president and chief of public policy, said in a statement that a Liberal government announcement on counter-tariffs to protect the steel and aluminum industries Thursday was 'geared toward the 30-day deadline, so we see no reason why DST's timeline shouldn't be as well.'

Canada won't delay digital services tax during U.S. trade negotiations, says finance minister

CBC

19-06-2025

Business
CBC

Canada won't delay digital services tax during U.S. trade negotiations, says finance minister

Canada won't put a hold on the digital services tax on big tech companies set to take effect on June 30, the finance minister said Thursday. Pressure has mounted on Ottawa to hold off while the government is in trade discussions with the U.S., which opposes the tax. Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said the legislation was passed by Parliament, and Canada is "going ahead" with the tax. "The [digital services tax] is in force and it's going to be applied," he told reporters before a cabinet meeting on Parliament Hill. The digital services tax will hit companies like Amazon, Google, Meta, Uber and Airbnb with a three per cent levy on revenue from Canadian users. It will apply retroactively, leaving U.S. companies with a $2-billion US bill due at the end of the month. A June 11 letter signed by 21 members of Congress said U.S. companies would pay 90 per cent of the revenue Canada collects from the tax. Canadian and U.S. business groups, organizations representing U.S. tech giants and American lawmakers have all signed letters in recent weeks calling for the tax to be eliminated or paused. It is set to take effect just weeks before a deadline Canada and the U.S. have set for coming up with a new trade deal. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce and other organizations have warned retaliatory measures in a U.S. budget bill could hit Canadians' pension funds and investments. Champagne said Canada isn't the only country that could be affected by those retaliatory measures. "These are discussions at the global level," he said in French. Champagne said there's a wider discussion going on among G7 nations about tax regimes. David Pierce, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce's vice-president of government relations, said in an earlier interview his organization fears Canada could "aggravate an already very tricky trade discussion" if it goes ahead with the tax and the retroactive payment requirement. The Liberals first promised the tax in the 2019 election, but it was delayed for years due to global efforts to establish a broader, multinational digital taxation plan.

Champagne says Canada won't pause digital services tax

CTV News