China is gearing up to launch an antitrust probe into Google based on the allegations that the company has leveraged the dominance of its Android mobile operating system to stifle competition, reports Reuters.
The Chinese government has also added that the practice could cause “extreme damage” to Huawei and other Chinese companies. It is said that the case was proposed by Huawei last year and has been submitted by the top market regulator to the State Council’s antitrust committee for review.
A decision on proceeding with the formal investigation could come sometime this month. The investigation, if it goes ahead, could affect China’s relationship with the United States, which has already deteriorated by the U.S. government targeting Chinese companies.
The development comes at a time when the Trump administrator has targeted several Chinese companies. It has put sanctions on Huawei, effectively banning the company and restricting it in several ways, making it difficult to keep doing business.
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Apart from Huawei, the United States government is also targeting other companies, including ByteDance-owned TikTok, Tencent’s WeChat, and the country’s one of the largest chipset maker SMIC.
China is also planning a major revamp of its antitrust laws and the newly proposed amendments include a dramatic increase in maximum fines and expanded criteria for judging a company’s control of a market.
On the other hand, the United States is also reportedly planning to launch an antitrust probe against Google. The Department of Justice could look into Google’s Android dominance, along with its large share of digital advertising and search engine businesses.
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