Google 'illegally took content from Amazon, Yelp, TripAdvisor,' report reveals

Google manipulated its search results to promote its own services over those of rival websites in ways that led to “real harm to consumers”, The Guardian reports, citing a previously unpublished report by American regulators.

The revelations were seized on by those calling for Brussels to challenge Google’s monopoly over search in Europe, and have sparked new claims that the search giant’s financing of Barack Obama’s re-election campaign swayed US regulators.

America’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted unanimously to end its investigation into Google in early 2013 after extracting concessions from the silicon valley company.

But documents accidentally handed to the Wall Street Journal show the FTC’s own investigators claim Google’s “conduct has resulted – and will result – in real harm to consumers and to innovation in the online search and advertising markets”.

The findings, contained in a report produced in 2012 by FTC staff to advise commissioners before their final decision on the case, found Google also caused “harm to many vertical competitors”.

Those who have complained that their businesses were damaged by Google include local directory Yelp, Microsoft and its search engine Bing, and the travel websites TripAdvisor and Expedia.

Staff also found Google illegally took content from Yelp, TripAdvisor and Amazon to improve its own services. In one instance, Google allegedly copied Amazon’s rankings for how well products were selling, and used them to rank its own results for product searches. Reviews and ratings were also found to have been lifted from Amazon.