The United Kingdom is aligning itself with the United States and European Union in a global crackdown on Google’s market power, after its competition regulator designated the company with a special status enabling forced changes. The Competition and Market Authority (CMA) confirmed Google has “strategic market status” (SMS), a move that legal experts say allows the UK to follow suit with its international counterparts.
This is the first designation under the UK’s new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, signaling a more muscular approach to tech regulation. The SMS status is a formal recognition of Google’s dominance, as it controls over 90% of the UK search market, which the CMA believes necessitates a bespoke set of rules to ensure competition can thrive.
The CMA is now empowered to design and enforce new rules for Google. Among the proposals being considered are “choice screens” that would give users an easy way to switch to other search providers, including AI-driven alternatives. Other areas of focus include the fairness of search result rankings and the rights of publishers over how their content is used in Google’s products, such as its AI Overviews.
Google has expressed concern that the UK’s regulatory path could harm its ability to innovate and serve British users. A senior director cautioned that the interventions could slow product launches during a period of significant AI-based innovation. However, Tom Smith, a competition lawyer and former CMA director, stated there is a “very well-established case” for tackling the market distortions caused by Google’s monopoly.
The CMA has initiated a process that will see a formal consultation on potential remedies later this year. The designation is not a punishment but the trigger for creating new rules of engagement for Google in the UK. The regulator is also separately investigating whether the mobile ecosystems of Apple and Google should be subject to the same powerful SMS designation.