China is preparing to launch an antitrust probe into Alphabet Inc’s Google, looking into allegations it has leveraged the dominance of its Android mobile operating system to stifle competition, two people familiar with the matter said.
The case was last year proposed by telecommunications equipment giant Huawei Technologies Co (華為) and has been submitted by the country’s top market regulator to the Chinese State Council’s antitrust committee for review, they added.
A decision on whether to proceed with a formal investigation might come as soon as this month and could be affected by the state of China’s relationship with the US, one of the people said.
The potential investigation follows a raft of actions by US President Donald Trump’s administration to hobble Chinese technology companies, for which it has cited national security risks.
It also comes as China embarks on a major revamp of its antitrust laws with proposed amendments including a dramatic increase in maximum fines and expanded criteria for judging a company’s control of a market.
A potential probe would also look at accusations that Google’s market position could cause “extreme damage” to Chinese companies such as Huawei, as losing the US tech giant’s support for Android-based operating systems would lead to loss of confidence and revenue, a second person said.
Google did not provide immediate comment, while Huawei declined to comment.
The Chinese State Administration for Market Regulation and the council did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The US trade blacklist bars Google from providing technical support to new Huawei phone models and access to Google Mobile Services, the bundle of developer services upon which most Android apps are based.
It was not immediately clear what Google services the potential probe would focus on. Most Chinese smartphone vendors use an open-source version of the Android platform with alternatives to Google services on their domestic phones. Google’s search, e-mail and other services are blocked in China.
Seeking to overcome its reliance on Google, Huawei announced plans this month to introduce its proprietary Harmony operating system in smartphones next year.
Chinese regulators would be looking at examples set by their peers in Europe and in India if it proceeds with the antitrust investigation, the first source said.
“China will also look at what other countries have done, including holding inquiries with Google executives,” the person said.
The EU in 2018 fined Google 4.3 billion euros (US$5.04 billion at the current exchange rate) over anticompetitive practices.
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