Google has said it would take action against Interactivecorp (IAC) over marketing practices it deems deceptive due to fears it would escalate antitrust scrutiny, according to CNBC. Google found out that IAC-made extensions for Google’s Chrome offered some functions they didn’t follow on and drove users towards additional ads.
- Google’s internal report recommended “immediate removal and deactivation” of IAC browser extensions.
- Google’s executives feared that penalties against IAC might be seen as anticompetitive even as the tech giant faces antitrust lawsuits from the Department of Justice and other antitrust investigators.
- IAC has responded, stating that Google approved the browser extensions and worked with the company to make them compliant
- IAC, which owns brands including Angie’s List, Investopedia, and The Daily Beast, has been a top spender on Google ads
- Top travel sites, including Expedia, have expressed the need to become less reliant on Google in light of its own raids into the travel search space.
- Google’s Chrome has already attracted scrutiny due to the company’s decision earlier this year to phase out support for third-party cookies that track users and target ads.
Google and IAC stocks are currently declining. GOOGL: NASDAQ is down 0.92%, IAC: NASDAQ is down 1.09%
