Google faces investigation in Turkey over ad market abuse
Turkey's Competition Authority has launched a probe into Google's Performance Max (PMAX), an AI-powered ad tool.
They're checking if Google is using PMAX—and all the advertiser data it collects—to boost its power beyond just search ads, which could hurt fair competition.
This comes not long after Turkey fined Google $75 million for earlier ad-related issues.
Regulators' concerns and global context of the case
PMAX lets advertisers run campaigns across platforms like Search, YouTube, Gmail, Maps, and Shopping—all in one go.
Regulators worry that combining so much data and using AI to optimize ads could squeeze out rivals and limit choices for advertisers.
This case isn't just about Turkey; it reflects a bigger global push (like in the EU) to keep big tech companies from getting too much control over digital markets.