Skip to main content

Canada closes investigation into anti-competitive practices at Google

Canada closes investigation into anti-competitive practices at Google

Share this story

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Google is in the clear with Canadian competition regulators. Canada's Competition Bureau announced this morning that it was closing a three-year-long investigation into Google's business practices. It only found one instance of anti-competitive behavior during that time — back in 2013, when the investigation opened — but Google resolved the issue shortly thereafter following complaints by the United States Federal Trade Commission. Aside from that, the bureau "did not find sufficient evidence" of anticompetitive behavior.

"We’re pleased that the Canadian Competition Bureau has decided to end its inquiry," Kent Walker, Google's general counsel, said in a statement. "We work hard in a competitive landscape to create a great experience for our users and help them quickly and easily find what they need from Google."

Canada says it'll watch other countries' investigations for now

The one issue that Canada did come up with revolved around AdWords. It was concerned that part of Google's AdWords contract prevented companies from advertising on multiple search engines. Google has agreed not to include similar restrictions on any products within Canada for the next five years.

Though Canada is formally ending its investigation today, the Competition Bureau says that it's still interested in what Google's up to. The bureau says that it "will be closely following developments with respect to Google’s ongoing conduct, including the results from investigations of our international counterparts." And there are quite a few of those going on, with investigations taking place in Russia, India, and the EU.