Internet search giant and Alphabet (GOOGL) subsidiary Google is embroiled in more legal troubles over its dominant position in the advertising market. Turkey’s government slapped Google with a $75 million fine for favoring its own ads through its search engine and Chrome web browser.
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This fine comes with a warning from Turkey’s Competition Authority. Google must ensure third-party services aren’t disadvantaged compared to its own offerings. It has six months to make these changes or face additional fines and legal action.
Google’s Ongoing Legal Troubles
Turkey isn’t the only country with complaints about how Google handles its search engine, Chrome browser, and advertising platform. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is targeting the company in a recent lawsuit after a judge ruled that Google monopolizes the search sector.
With this ruling, the DOJ is calling for a breakup of Google to limit its power. It seeks the forced sale of Chrome to separate the web browser from Google’s search engine. Doing so would limit the data Google collects from Chrome and funnels into its advertising platform for targeted ads.
One change that the DOJ wants, but isn’t pushing for, is the sale of Android. The agency said this would reduce Google’s ad monopoly, but worries such a call would face strong objections from the company and others in the industry.
Is GOOGL Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
Turning to Wall Street, the analysts’ consensus rating for Alphabet is Strong Buy based on 27 Buy and six Hold ratings over the last three months. With that comes an average price target of $209.21, a high of $240, and a low of $185. This represents a potential 9.92% upside for GOOGL shares.
