Brasília, August 29, 2025 — Brazil’s competition authority has intensified its investigation into Google’s treatment of journalistic content, inviting civil society to weigh in on whether the tech giant’s practices harm the news industry.
The Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) announced on Thursday that it will expand the scope of an inquiry launched in 2019, which examines whether Google has abused its dominant position in online search and news distribution. At issue are claims that Google improperly used third-party journalism on its platforms — Google Search and Google News — in ways that could reduce organic traffic to publishers’ websites and threaten the financial sustainability of the press.
Counselor Diogo Thomson, who is leading the case, has called for contributions from academics, industry associations, non-profits, and other stakeholders. Submissions, which may include studies, analyses, and expert opinions, must be filed within 30 days of the ruling’s publication in the Official Gazette of the Union. The deadline falls on September 29.
“The initiative is designed to broaden our technical base of information and ensure that the Court has the necessary elements to assess the potential competitive effects of these practices,” Thomson said in the dispatch.
To guide responses, CADE has circulated questionnaires to Google and representatives of media organizations. The questions focus on issues such as the impact of algorithm and AI-driven changes on news traffic, the remuneration of journalistic content, and how Google’s integration of search and digital advertising might affect competition.
All submissions must be filed via CADE’s Electronic Information System (SEI/Cade) to be included in the official record of Administrative Inquiry No. 08700.003498/2019-03.
The probe comes as regulators worldwide grapple with how tech platforms wield power over the distribution and monetization of news, with many countries considering or adopting measures to compel companies like Google to pay publishers for content.
