ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey’s competition board announced on Monday that it had imposed a fine of 482 million lira ($14.85 million) on Google for failing to meet obligations regarding hotel searches.
In 2021, the board imposed a fine of over 296 million lira on Google for obstructing the operations of its rivals “by favoring its own local search (Local Unit) and accommodation price comparison (GOOGLE Hotel Ads-GHA) services in the general search results page in terms of positioning and display, and preventing competing local search websites from entering the Local Unit, thereby distorting competition in the markets,” according to a statement from the board.
At the time, the competition board asked Google to address its concerns and imposed certain obligations on the tech giant to “eliminate the violation and establish effective competition in the market.”
The board on Monday decided “to impose a fine of around 482 million TL on Google as a sanction for failing to implement the new designs with respect to local search services to hotel inquiries,” according to the statement.
Google has yet to comment on the decision.
Imposing sanctions and restricting services of tech companies is not new in Turkey. In May 2023, X (then known as Twitter) announced that it restricted access to “some content” within Turkey to ensure that the social media platform remained available in the country, just days before the country’s presidential vote.
In 2017, Turkey’s Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK) blocked all access to Wikipedia after the website’s administration refused to remove two pages stating that Ankara channeled support to jihadists in Syria. BTK said the law allowed it to ban access to any website deemed obscene or a threat to national security.
The ban on Wikipedia was lifted in January 2020.
