Brazil Probes Google, Meta Over Abuse Of Dominant Positions In News

The Administrative Council for Economic Defense began an administrative investigation procedure to probe Google and Meta for alleged abuse of a dominant position in the debate on its “Fake News Bill.”

Cade made this decision after receiving several complaints against the Big Tech companies that point to the alleged campaign against the project on their platforms, including YouTube, Facebook and Instagram.

Read more: Google, Meta Threaten To Withdraw News Over Canada’s Online News Bill

Brazil’s Congress is weighing a regulatory bill that would shift the burden onto internet companies to report illegal content on their sites, a controversial initiative that has pitted the administration of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva against major tech companies such as Google.

On Tuesday, Google was forced to remove a link on its home page in Brazil that advocated against Bill 2630, also known as the Fake News Law.

The Brazilian proposal, which would create penalties for tech companies that fail to crack down on fake news and other illegal materials on their platforms, would be among the strictest legislation governing social media and other content-hosting websites.