The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has secured legally binding commitments from Google to address competition concerns over its Privacy Sandbox.

The BigTech’s Privacy Sandbox initiative aims to remove commonly used tracking mechanisms, like third-party cookies, and block techniques such as fingerprinting.

The CMA has been investigating the move since it was launched in January 2021, over concerns that the proposals would cause online advertising spending to become even more concentrated on Google, weakening competition and harming consumers who ultimately pay for the cost of online advertising.

The competition watchdog has previously expressed concerns that the proposals could undermine the ability of online publishers, such as newspapers, to generate revenue and continue to produce valuable content in the future - reducing the public’s choice of news sources.

The CMA said the final commitments accepted today are the result of an in-depth investigation and extensive engagement with Google and market participants, including 2 formal public consultations.

The CMA said it is working closely with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) to oversee the development of the proposals, so that they protect privacy without unduly restricting competition and harming consumers.

The commitments can be seen below:

• Involvement of the CMA and the ICO in the development and testing of the Privacy Sandbox proposals, to ensure they achieve effective outcomes for consumers to protect both competition and privacy;
• Google will engage in a more transparent process than initially proposed, including engagement with third parties and publishing test results, with the option for the CMA to require Google to address issues raised by the CMA or third parties;
• Google will not remove third-party cookies until the CMA is satisfied that its competition concerns have been addressed. If the CMA is not satisfied that its competition concerns have been addressed, the CMA may take further action (i.e. re-open its investigation, impose interim measures or proceed to a decision);
• Commitments to restrict the sharing of data within its ecosystem to ensure that it doesn’t gain an advantage over competitors when third-party cookies are removed; and commitments to not self-preference its advertising services;
• A Monitoring Trustee will be appointed to work alongside the CMA to ensure the commitments are monitored effectively and Google complies with its obligations. This appointment is expected to be made shortly.

“Our intervention in this case demonstrates our commitment to protecting competition in digital markets and our global role in shaping the behaviour of world-leading tech firms,” said chief executive at the CMA Andrea Coscelli. “The commitments we have obtained from Google will promote competition, help to protect the ability of online publishers to raise money through advertising and safeguard users’ privacy.

“While this is an important step, we are under no illusions that our work is done. We now move into a new phase where we will keep a close eye on Google as it continues to develop these proposals.”

He added: “We will engage with all market participants in this process, in order to ensure that Google is taking account of concerns and suggestions raised”.

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