Photo: Bogdan Popa/autoevolution/Polestar
Google has become one of the key players in the car infotainment business, as the company is working closely with a growing number of carmakers on bringing Android Automotive and Google Automotive Services to their vehicles.
But this aggressive push might violate competition regulations, with German authorities now planning to ask the search giant to change its practices "unless they are objectively justified." And, of course, they aren't, so Google will have no other option than to update its automotive strategy or face a ban in Germany.
More specifically, the Bundeskartellamt (Germany's Federal Cartel Office, the country's antitrust watchdog) says Google bundling together the Google Play Store, Google Assistant, and Google Maps into the Google Automotive Services package "may pose a significant risk to competition."
As such, offering GAS together with Android Automotive builds a complete infotainment system that leaves little room for competitors, as the services aren't otherwise available separately.
The German authorities say Google might be trying this strategy specifically to dominate the automotive infotainment market, a side of the industry that is "still competitive."
But as it turns out, this isn't Google's only problem. The nation's competition watchdog also determined that in some cases, the American tech giant has agreed to pay carmakers a share of its advertising revenues if they agree to use Google Assistant as the exclusive digital assistant in their models. In some cases, carmakers have no other option than to set Google services as the default options, according to the contractual details.
Moreover, the German competition watchdog says Google also blocks third-party services from connecting to its car applications. For example, Google does not allow competitors to create voice assistants to control navigation in Google Maps, the Bundeskartellamt explains.
The Mountain View-based search company says it's already working with the antitrust regulators in Germany on addressing their concerns but emphasizes that Android Automotive already comes with thousands of apps that can run on the platform. As such, carmakers and drivers are provided with plenty of alternatives to its services, Google says.
Android Automotive's adoption is slowly but surely improving in the automotive market, as several big carmakers have already installed the operating system in their cars – or plan to do so for 2024 model year vehicles.
The German agency, however, says Google might use its automotive products for practices that it already "successfully used to expand or secure its market position" in the mobile world. Due to its questionable tactics, alternative solutions might be impossible to notice on Android Automotive, with Google eventually dominating the infotainment space behind the wheel.
According to the German authorities, Google's anti-competitive practices violate Section 19a of the German Competition Act. The search giant is now required to "comment on the allegations in factual and legal terms."
More specifically, the Bundeskartellamt (Germany's Federal Cartel Office, the country's antitrust watchdog) says Google bundling together the Google Play Store, Google Assistant, and Google Maps into the Google Automotive Services package "may pose a significant risk to competition."
As such, offering GAS together with Android Automotive builds a complete infotainment system that leaves little room for competitors, as the services aren't otherwise available separately.
The German authorities say Google might be trying this strategy specifically to dominate the automotive infotainment market, a side of the industry that is "still competitive."
But as it turns out, this isn't Google's only problem. The nation's competition watchdog also determined that in some cases, the American tech giant has agreed to pay carmakers a share of its advertising revenues if they agree to use Google Assistant as the exclusive digital assistant in their models. In some cases, carmakers have no other option than to set Google services as the default options, according to the contractual details.
Moreover, the German competition watchdog says Google also blocks third-party services from connecting to its car applications. For example, Google does not allow competitors to create voice assistants to control navigation in Google Maps, the Bundeskartellamt explains.
The Mountain View-based search company says it's already working with the antitrust regulators in Germany on addressing their concerns but emphasizes that Android Automotive already comes with thousands of apps that can run on the platform. As such, carmakers and drivers are provided with plenty of alternatives to its services, Google says.
Android Automotive's adoption is slowly but surely improving in the automotive market, as several big carmakers have already installed the operating system in their cars – or plan to do so for 2024 model year vehicles.
The German agency, however, says Google might use its automotive products for practices that it already "successfully used to expand or secure its market position" in the mobile world. Due to its questionable tactics, alternative solutions might be impossible to notice on Android Automotive, with Google eventually dominating the infotainment space behind the wheel.
According to the German authorities, Google's anti-competitive practices violate Section 19a of the German Competition Act. The search giant is now required to "comment on the allegations in factual and legal terms."
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