10 July 2025 – Ankara
Turkey’s Competition Authority has imposed significant daily administrative fines on Google, totaling approximately $10.8 million USD, after concluding that the company failed to comply with obligations imposed following a 2021 abuse of dominance ruling.
The fine applies to the economic unity of Alphabet Inc., Google Ireland Limited, Google LLC, Google International LLC, and Google Reklamcılık ve Pazarlama Ltd. Şti., collectively referred to as Google.
2021 Decision: Market Abuse in Local Search and Hotel Ads
On 8 April 2021, the Turkish Competition Board (Decision No. 21-20/248-105) ruled that Google had abused its dominant position in the general search market by favoring its own local search results (Local Unit) and hotel price comparison service (Google Hotel Ads), to the detriment of rivals. The board found this conduct harmed competition by limiting access and visibility for competitors.
As a result, Google was fined 296 million TL, or roughly $9 million USD, and was ordered to implement changes ensuring equal treatment of rival services on its search results page.
Continued Violations and the Launch of “Business Ads”
Despite Google’s submission of proposed design changes to address the Board’s concerns, regulators found that the company launched a new feature, “Business Ads”, labeled as “paid sponsored advertisements”, which effectively replicated the preferential treatment that had prompted the initial penalty.
In a meeting held on 26 June 2025 (Decision No. 25-23/562-362), the Board concluded that Google’s new implementation violated the original order to remove competitive disadvantages for rival local and hotel search services.
Escalating Penalty: Daily Fines of 0.05% of Annual Revenue
Citing non-compliance, the Board has imposed a daily administrative fine equal to 0.05% of Google’s 2024 gross revenue, pursuant to Article 17.1(a) of Turkey’s Competition Act (Law No. 4054). The total fine imposed as of now amounts to 355.1 million TL, or approximately $10.8 million USD.
This move underscores the regulator’s resolve to enforce competition law and ensure compliance in digital markets, particularly with powerful global tech platforms.
Looking Ahead
The Turkish Competition Authority has not ruled out further action if Google remains non-compliant. The case is part of a broader international push to curb anti-competitive behavior by dominant digital platforms, as regulators from the EU to the Asia-Pacific increase oversight of Big Tech practices.
