EU launches new probe into Google

The European Union has launched a new investigation into the Google search engine, to find out if it is breaking the bloc's competition rules by not adequately paying publishers for their content, and whether the company is setting unfair conditions on content creators who do not want to share their work.

The EU's executive, the European Commission, said on Tuesday it is particularly interested in the way Google's artificial intelligence, or AI, uses YouTube content.

"We are investigating whether Google may have imposed unfair terms and conditions on publishers and content creators, while placing rival AI models developers at a disadvantage," said Teresa Ribera, the commission's executive vice-president for a clean, just and competitive transition.

Ribera added that the probe is "once again a strong signal of our commitment to protecting the online press and other content creators, and to ensuring fair competition in emerging AI markets".

The investigation will look at how YouTube videos are used to train AI services, and whether content creators who opt out of participation lose access to any Google services as a result.

The probe will also look at the way AI-generated summaries are displayed at the top of lists of search results, potentially obscuring direct links to the content used to provide the summary, and leading to fewer clicks on the source site and reduced advertising revenue.

Reuters quoted a Google spokesperson as saying the probe will not boost competition.

"This complaint risks stifling innovation in a market that is more competitive than ever," the spokesperson said. "Europeans deserve to benefit from the latest technologies and we will continue to work closely with the news and creative industries as they transition to the AI era."

The commission said AI is capable of "bringing remarkable innovation and many benefits for people and businesses across Europe" but that online information must be fair for people and companies in the 27-nation bloc.

"Google does not remunerate YouTube content creators for their content, nor does (it) allow them to upload their content on YouTube without allowing Google to use such data," the commission said. "At the same time, rival developers of AI models are barred by YouTube policies from using YouTube content to train their own AI models."

The investigation is the latest in a series on probes the block has undertaken into US technology companies, with firms facing fines of up to 10 percent of their global annual revenue if found guilty.

The bloc's digital rules have been criticized by US technology giants and by US President Donald Trump's administration.

And, after the bloc recently fined Elon Musk's X 120 million euros ($139.6 million), US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said it amounted to "an attack on all American tech platforms and the American people by foreign governments".