FAO: Executive Vice-President & Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager Rue de la Loi / Wetstraat 200 1049 Brussels 12 November 2020 by e-mail: [email protected]

Re: Tech companies call upon the Commission to enforce its 2017 abuse of dominance decision by finally putting an end to Google’s continuing practice of favouring its own specialised search services within general search results pages

Dear Executive Vice President Vestager,

We, the undersigned 135 companies and 30 industry associations, are writing to you as representatives of a diverse community of online services, operating across Europe. Our online services offer consumers the opportunity to find and inform themselves of the most relevant offerings online, such as those for products, accommodation, travel, or job vacancies. As search services of different sizes, each with a particular focus, we all strive to serve consumers and enable them to find and compare specific categories of information online more efficiently.

While we compete amongst ourselves for the best consumer experience, there is one common competitor that does not compete fairly – Google. We all face strong competition from Google in our respective search services markets. Google has entered each of these markets by leveraging its unassailable dominance in general search – to gain a competitive head start and quickly gain market shares. Even starting out as a late entrant in each of these markets, Google has achieved a dominating scale and scope in no time. Like no before, Google has amassed data and content relevant for competition on such markets at the expense of others – us.

Google did not achieve its position on any such market by competing on the merits. Rather, there is now global consensus1 that Google gained unjustified advantages through preferentially treating its own services within its general search results pages by displaying various forms of grouped specialised search results (so-called “OneBoxes”). Such OneBoxes are positioned prominently above all generic search results. No competing service may compile and display equivalent boxes within Google’s general search results pages, even though they could provide more relevant results than Google’s service.2 With this exclusive use of OneBoxes, Google

1 See U.S. House of Representatives antitrust subcommittee report, Investigation of Competition in Digital Markets, October 2020, pp. 177 et seq., pp. 381, 395, 397; et al. v Google LLC, U.S. District Court for the D.C., Case No. 1:20-cv-03010, Complaint of 20 October 2020, paras. 170, 175. 2 In some cases, Google allows for the participation of rival services through the paid-for or “free” inclusion of their content. However, this does not amount to equal treatment as it is Google’s specialised search service alone that matches the search query; that is, Google, not the participating services, decides on the form of the grouped specialised search results that it displays and with what content from its own database these boxes are filled based on Google’s own specialised search algorithms. Such matching is what constitutes a specialised search service. Thus, the OneBoxes always (only) serve as an interface of a Google-owned specialised search service, which, akin to rival specialised (meta-)search services, can include content from a variety of sources. [1] artificially keeps users within its own service and prevents them from visiting competing, more relevant services. The various functionalities of the interfaces that Google directly integrates in its general search results pages continue to adopt more and more of what we offer on our websites. It was bad enough that in the past such boxes simply served as “teasers” to divert users to separate websites of specialised Google services. The boxes now increasingly outright provide such specialised search services to consumers directly within Google’s general search results pages, leaving no option for avoiding them. We are now directly competing with such interfaces.

Google’s technical integration of its own specialised search services into its near monopoly general search service continues to constitute a clear abuse of dominance. The Commission’s Google Search (Shopping) decision of 27 June 2017 (was supposed to3) set a precedent that Google is not permitted to promote its own services within the search results pages of its dominant general search service. However, as of today, the decision did not lead to Google changing anything meaningful. In Turkey, the competition authority decisively rejected4 the notion that Google’s European “Compliance Mechanism” is re-establishing competition. However, in Europe, even three years after the decision, with this mechanism Google is still not complying by either ceasing the displaying of Shopping Units (as is now the case in Turkey) or allowing all competing services to serve equivalent boxes, if Google believes that such boxes are in the user’s interest.5 Google has also not stopped any favouring of its other specialised search services. Google has even started to engage in similar conduct in new markets. Numerous complaints have been lodged with the Commission throughout this period.6 In the face of the ongoing conduct, at the oral hearing of the Google Search (Shopping) case before the General Court, one of the judges even questioned whether Google has indeed been sufficiently deterred from repeating the conduct.7

While a targeted regulation of digital gatekeepers may help in the long run, the Commission should first use its existing tools to enforce the Shopping precedent and ensure equal treatment within Google’s general search results pages. In general terms, we welcome the current legislative initiative to regulate dominant general search engines. However, we face the imminent risk of being disintermediated by Google. Many of us may not have the strength and resources to wait until such regulation really takes effect. Moreover, if, in the pending competition investigations, the Commission accepts Google’s current conduct as “equal treatment”, this creates the risk of pre-defining and hence devaluing the meaning of any future legislative ban on self-

3 On 27 June 2017, you stated: “And today’s decision is a precedent, which can be used as a framework to analyse the legality of such conduct.” See STATEMENT/17/1806, https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/STATEMENT_17_1806. 4 TCA, 12 February 2020, 20-20/119-69, “[P]lacement of competing CSSs in [Shopping Units] cannot provide a solution […] While Google can compare the offers selected by itself or competing CSSs when competitors enter this space, competing CSSs can be listed in this space with only one or a limited number of offers. […] [I]t does not seem possible to eliminate the effects in question simply by allowing competitors to enter this space.” (translated from Turkish language), recitals (298), (310); http://www.rekabet.gov.tr/Karar?kararId=828974ff-6cd9- 4318-a9fa-ee43a21f9c07. 5 See the empirical study of Hoppner, Google’s (Non-)Compliance with the EU Shopping Decision, September 2020, https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3700748. 6 See, for example, the letter of 23 online recruitment services sent to Commissioner Vestager on 13 August 2019, as reported at https://www.reuters.com/article/us-eu-google-antitrust-exclusive/exclusive-googles- jobs-search-draws-antitrust-complaints-from-rivals-idUSKCN1V30IX, and the letter of 40 vacation rental rivals and industry associations of 10 February 2020, as reported at https://www.reuters.com/article/us-eu- alphabet-antitrust/googles-holiday-rental-service-under-fire-as-40-rivals-urge-eu-antitrust-action- idUSKBN2041XG. 7 See https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-judge-suggests-google-fine-should-be-higher-european-commission- preferential-treatment/. [2] preferencing. Competition and innovation will continue to be stifled, simply because the necessary measures to counter the further anti-competitive expansion are not taken right now.

Action is required now. If Google were allowed to continue the anti-competitive favouring of its own specialised search services until any meaningful regulation takes effect, our services will continue to lack traffic, data and the opportunity to innovate on the merits. Until then, our businesses continue to be trapped in a vicious cycle – providing benefits to Google’s competing services while rendering our own services obsolete in the long run.

The undersigning companies urge the Commission to enforce Google’s compliance with the Google Search (Shopping) decision and to take all necessary measures to stop the favouring and provision of other Google services within its general search results pages.

Yours sincerely,

(in alphabetical order)

Companies

Ralph Michaelsen Frederic Lambert Doug Monro CEO CEO CEO Invia Travel GmbH Acheter-moins-cher ADHUNTER LTD ab-in-den-urlaub.de acheter-moins-cher.com adzuna.com (Germany) (France) (United Kingdom)

Jürgen Führer Tom Thomas Christian Schmidt-Hamkens Managing Director General Counsel Speaker of the management Deutscher Ärzteverlag GmbH Agoda Company Pte. Ltd. Landwirtschaftsverlag GmbH aerztestellen.aerzteblatt.de agoda.com agrajo.de (Germany) (Singapore) (Germany)

[3] Frederico Formigal Harald Schiffauer Csaba Racz CEO Managing Director CEO AlertaEmprego, Lda. ÁrGép Online Comparison Shopping Kft. alertaemprego.pt argep.hu arukereso.hu () (Germany/Hungary) (Hungary)

Daniel Haeseler Rupa Patel Giuseppe Pelosi Managing Director General Counsel CEO Panther Holding GmbH Awaze Limited Belita GmbH auspreiser.de awaze.com belita-ferienhaus.de (Germany) (United Kingdom) (Germany)

Graham Everitt, Ray Duggins Michal Tvrzník Bernd Vermaaten Directors COO & Co-Founder Managing Director Quantum Response Network Ltd. Biano s.r.o solute GmbH best-jobs-online.com biano.com billiger.de (United Kingdom) (Czech Republic) (Germany)

Maria Rocha Barros Willem van der Wilden Stevan Lutz Senior Vice President and CEO CEO Chief Legal Officer Bungalow.Net BV Casamundo GmbH Booking.com B.V. bungalow.net casamundo.de booking.com (Netherlands) (Germany) (Netherlands)

[4] Fabrizio Begossi Darko Dujic Marcin Łachajczyk, CEO CEO Paweł Kowalski FERIES S.r.l. Ceneje d.o.o. General Manager, CTO casevacanza.it ceneje.si Ceneo.pl Sp. z.o.o. () (Slovenia) ceneo.pl ()

Peter Hallmann Quentin Adam Povilas Kytra Managing Director CEO CEO Baltics cesar Internetdienste GmbH Clever Cloud CV Market Group cesar.de clever-cloud.com cvmarket.lt (Germany) (France) (Lithuania)

Birgit Hoffmann Dritan Mezini Guillaume Teissonnière Director CEO General Counsel dk-ferien Aps Duapune Vacaciones eDreams, S.L. dk-ferien.dk duapune.com edreamsodigeo.com (Denmark) (Albania) (Spain)

Christian König Fabio Núñez Eric La Bonnardière CEO CEO CEO Eiderstedter Immobilien Escapada Rural Servicios EVANEOS SA Appartement-Vermittlung Para Propietarios, S.L. evaneos.com Reisedienst GmbH escapadarural.com (France) eiderstedter.de (Spain) (Germany)

[5] Philippe Montant Jean-Philippe Monod Christian Göttsch CEO de Froideville Managing Director GMEP Senior Vice President Experteer GmbH ExeKutive.biz Government & Corporate Affairs experteer.com (Morocco) Expedia Group (Germany) expediagroup.com (United States)

Jan Zajíc Henrik Ranch Daniel Ziolko Managing Director CEO & Founder Managing Director Favi online s.r.o. fejo.dk ApS resido GmbH favi.cz fejo.dk ferienhausmiete.de () () (Germany)

Stefan Sand Caroline Führer Christoph Müller CEO Managing Director Managing Director TravelMeta GmbH FEWO & MEER e. K. Rudolf Müller Medienholding GmbH fewoferien.de fewoundmeer.de & Co. KG (Germany) (Germany) fliesen-stellenmarkt.de (Germany)

Jochen Engert Shivaun Raff Markus Nigl Managing Director CEO and Co-Founder CEO FlixMobility GmbH Infederation Ltd Preisvergleich Internet Services AG flixbus.de foundem.com geizhals.at (Germany) (United Kingdom) ()

[6] Lars Fink, Johannes Reck Marjin Bom Rainer Weckbach CEO Founder Managing Directors GetYourGuide AG Gites B.V. get in GmbH getyourguide.com gites.com

get-in-it.de (Germany) (Netherlands)

(Germany)

Tomáš Hodboď Harald Schiffauer Christophe Chastel CEO Managing Director CEO Inspigroup s.r.o. guenstiger.de GmbH Guest Apartment Services SAS glami.cz guenstiger.de guestapartment.com (Czech Republic) (Germany) (France)

Alfons Schräder Tomáš Braverman Martin Slavik Managing Director CEO Director E-commerce Heise Medien GmbH & Co. KG Heureka Group a.s. CZECH NEWS CENTER a.s. heise.de heureka.cz hledejceny.cz (Germany) (Czech Republic) (Czech Republic)

Marc Al-Hames Alexander Claashen Johannes Siebers, CEO Managing Director Michael Siebers HolidayCheck AG Holiday Home AG CEO, CTO holidaycheck.de holiday-home.de Holidu GmbH (Germany) () holidu.com

(Germany)

[7] Krzystof Wierzbicki Claude Chopard Lallier Patrick Andrä Supervisory Board Member CEO & Founder CEO & Founder Stileo Sp. z o.o. Home Rental Service SAS HomeToGo GmbH homelook.it homerental.fr hometogo.de (Poland/Italy) (France) (Germany)

Frédéric Laignel Albrecht von Sonntag, Roman Campa CEO & Founder Philipp Peitsch General Manager i-Comparateur SARL Managing Directors Adevinta Spain, S.L.U. i-comparateur.com idealo internet GmbH infojobs.net (France) idealo.de (Spain) (Germany)

Sonja Cetkovic Ken Fouhy Michal Tůma Website Director Managing Director Director Infostud VDI Verlag GmbH Invia Group infostud.com ingenieur.de invia.cz (Serbia) (Germany) (Czech Republic)

Orla Moran Isabella Tarticchio Torben Tronborg General Manager CEO CSO Saongroup Ltd Naron d.o.o. IT-Jobbank A/S irishjobs.ie istriasun.com it-jobbank.dk (Ireland) (Croatia) (Denmark)

[8] David Creslovnik Luis Verdeja Dennis Roi Hansen Manging Director Director Head of Intelligence & Audience sMind d.o.o. Jobartis Teknologiens Mediehus jetfinije.hr jobartis.com Jobfinder.dk (Croatia) (Angola) (Denmark)

Kaare Danielsen Lukas Erlebach Plamen Voushev CEO CEO CEO Jobindex A/S Joblift GmbH JOBS.BG Ltd jobindex.dk joblift.de jobs.bg (Denmark) (Germany) (Bulgaria)

Christopher Paye Wolfgang Achilles, Vijay Iyer General Manager Matthias Reineke General Counsel Jobs.ie Ltd Managing Directors KAYAK Software Corporation jobs.ie Jobware GmbH kayak.com (Ireland) jobware.de (United States) (Germany)

Richard Stables Torsten Hein, Alexander Roß Laia Simó CEO Managing Directors Head of Legal kimeta GmbH Kleding B.V. kelkoogroup.com kimeta.de kleding.nl (United Kingdom) (Germany) (Netherlands)

[9] Pedro Pimenta Johannes Kotte Thomas Kortenjan CEO & Founder Managing Director Manager Paginadotcom S.A. Visual Meta GmbH LV digital GmbH kuantokusta.pt visual-meta.com landreise.de (Portugal) (Germany) (Germany)

Marco Corradino Steve Thomas Javier Bellido Managing Director General Counsel General Director LM Group LeGuide.com SAS Liligo MetasearchTechnologies S.A. lastminute.com leguide.com liligo.fr (Germany) (France) (France)

Michael Röcker Jasný Hélène Draghi CEO Executive Director CEO LionsHome GmbH LMC s.r.o. WEB EMERAUDE SARL lionshome.de lmc.eu location-et-vacances.com (Germany) (Czech Republic) (France)

Frédéric Hernandez Philippe Lenoir, Pascal Voyat Rudolf Ristov CEO Co-Founders Managing Director Location Vacances Express SAS Mailo SAS Metatravel Service GmbH location-vacances-express.com Mailo.fr metatravel-service.de (France) (France) (Germany)

[10] Miro Morczinek Igor Žonja Tomaž Gorjup CEO & Co-Founder Managing Director CEO X24Factory GmbH Tau on-line Ltd. Styria digital marketplaces, d.o.o. moebel24.de moi-posao.net mojedelo.com (Germany) (Croatia) (Slovenia)

Vijay Iyer Emmanuel Pioton Sam McIlveen General Counsel Manager General Manager Momondo A/S Apart Hotel Riviera NIjobs.com Ltd momondo.com myflatinnice.com nijobs.com (Denmark) (France) (Ireland)

Narem Shaam Marc Pinter-Krainer Vijay Iyer CEO CEO & Founder General Counsel GoEuro Corp. One News Page Ltd. OpenTable, Inc. Omio.com onenewspage.com opentable.com (United States) (United Kingdom) (United States)

Fabian Spielberger Gail Boisclair Przemek Gacek CEO & Founder CEO & Founder CEO Pepper Media Holding GmbH PerfectlyParis SARL Grupa Pracuj pepper.com perfectlyparis.com pracuj.pl

(Germany) (France) (Poland)

[11] Alice Janik Michal Král Nicklas Storåkers Managing Director CEO Managing Director comparado GmbH Pricemania s.r.o PriceRunner International AB preis.de pricemania.sk .com (Germany) (Slovakia) (Sweden)

Peter Greberg István Martis Doug Scott CEO CEO CEO & Founder Prisjakt Sverige AB PROFESSION.HU KFT. RedBrain Ltd prisjakt.nu profession.hu redbrain.com (Sweden) (Hungary) (United Kingdom)

Philippe Montant Ismo Kurri Mateusz Łukianiuk CEO Managing Director E-commerce Director REKRUTE, SARL LAURA Recruitment Ltd Ringier Axel Springer rekrute.com rekrytointi.com, laura.fi Polska Sp. z.o.o. (Morocco) () skapiec.pl (Poland)

George Hadjigeorgiou Rob Miller Chris Cummings CEO & Founder Chief Legal Officer CEO Skroutz Α.Ε. Skyscanner Ltd Curiosity Media, Inc. skroutz.gr skyscanner.com spanishdict.com (Greece) (United Kingdom) (United States)

[12] David Folprecht Hans Biermann Sebastian Dettmers CEO Managing Director CEO SROVNAME, s.r.o. Euro-Cities AG StepStone Deutschland GmbH srovname.cz stadtplandienst.de stepstone.de (Czech Republic) (Germany) (Germany)

Krzystof Wierzbicki Martin Slavik Caspar v. Seckendorff Supervisory Board Member Director E-commerce Managing Director Stileo Sp. z o.o. CN Invest a.s. Producto AG stileo.it stojizato.sme.sk testberichte.de (Poland/Italy) (Slovakia) (Germany)

Dustin Figge Dan Savage Radosław Damasiewicz CEO CEO CEO HOMELIKE INTERNET GmbH Tradecomet.com Ltd Travelplanet.pl S.A. thehomelike.com tradecomet.com travelplanet.pl (Germany) (United Kingdom) (Poland)

Seth Kalvert Stevan Lutz Axel Hefer Senior Vice President, Managing Director CEO General Counsel Tripping GmbH Trivago N.V. Tripadvisor LLC tripping.com trivago.com tripadvisor.com (Germany) (Germany) (United States)

[13] Marco Pescarmona Holger Reinhart Joris Verwater Chairman Director CEO 7Pixel srl Ostsee-Ferienhausvermietung Compare Group trovaprezzi.it Gosch vergelijk.nl (Italy) urlaub-gosch.de (Netherlands) (Germany)

Stephen Ellison Christoph Kreuzer Thomas Fauré Marketing & Sales Manager Managing Director CEO Vintage Spain Ltd wetter.com GmbH Whaller SAS vintagetravel.co.uk wetter.com whaller.com (United Kingdom) (Germany) (France)

Benedikt von Wissel Paul Peckels Luther Lowe Managing Director President of ALMI Senior VP Public Policy Wimdu Meta GmbH CEO Yelp Ireland Ltd. wimdu.de SAINT-PAUL S.A. yelp.com (Germany) wort.lu (Ireland) (Luxembourg)

[14] Associations and Organisations

Mikko Hoikka Joao Palmeiro Pierre Louette Executive Director Managing Director President Aikakausmedia Associação Portuguesa Alliance de la presse (Finnish Magazine de Imprensa d'information générale Media Association) apimprensa.pt alliancepresse.fr aikakausmedia.fi (Portugal) (France)

(Finland)

Dietmar Wolff Boris Trupčević Louise Brincker Executive Director CEO and Board Member CEO Bundesverband Croatian Publishers Association Danske Medier Digitalpublisher und hup.hr danskemedier.dk Zeitungsverleger e.V. (BDZV) (Croatia) (Denmark) bdzv.de (Germany)

Aye Helsig Norbert Kunz Ilias Konteas Chairman Managing Director Executive Director Deutscher Ferienhausverband Deutscher Tourismusverband European Newspaper Publishers’ e.V. e.V. (DTV) Association (ENPA) deutscher- deutschertourismusverband.de enpa.eu ferienhausverband.de (Germany) (Belgium) (Germany)

[15] Angela Mills Wade Emmanuel Mounier Elizabeth de Bony Executive Director General Secretary Executive Director European Publishers Council EU Travel Tech FairSearch (EPC) eutraveltech.eu fairsearch.org epceurope.eu (Belgium) (Belgium)

(Belgium)

Laurent Bérard-Quélin Bertrand Gié Michael Weber President CEO Chairman FNPS La presse spécialisée GESTE Initiative for a Competitive Online fnps.fr geste.fr Marketplace (ICOMP) (France) (France) (United Kingdom)

Bogusław Chrabota Daniel Van Wylick Bojana Božanić Ivanović President President CEO Chamber of Press Publishers LA PRESSE.be Lider media d.o.o. iwp.pl lapresse.be lider.media (Poland) (Belgium) (Croatia)

Ilias Konteas Léonidas Kalogeropoulos Rosa Bayo Alvarez Executive Director Delegate General President European Magazine Media Open Internet Project (OIP) Asociación Española Association (EMMA) Openinternetproject.net de Plataformas Digitales magazinemedia.eu (Belgium) de Alquiler Temporal (PAT) (Belgium) pat.org.es

(Spain)

[16] Owen Meredith Marie Pistinier Kerstin Neld CEO Secretary of the Board CEO Professional Publishers Syndicat des Professionnels de Sveriges Tidskrifter Association la Location Meublée sverigestidskrifter.se ppa.co.uk splm-france.fr (Sweden) (United Kingdom) (France)

Václav Mach Christoph Fiedler Markus Runde CEO Managing Director Managing Director Czech Publishers Association European and Media Policies VG Media GmbH unievydavatelu.cz Verband Deutscher vg-media.de (Czech Republic) Zeitschriftenverleger e.V. (VDZ) (Germany) vdz.de (Germany)

Michael Buller Gerald Grünberger Xavier Bouckaert Chairman Managing Director Chairman Verband Internet Reisevertrieb Verband WE MEDIA e.V. (VIR) Österreichischer Zeitungen wemedia.be v-i-r.de voez.at (Belgium) (Germany) (Austria)

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