According to media reports on Thursday, Alphabet Inc-CL C, owned by Alphabet Inc,The European Union's antitrust regulator is investigating whether the company may force device makers to use Google Assistant as the default voice assistant on Android devices.
The European Commission said in June that its industry investigation into Internet-connected devices had raised widespread concerns about certain exclusivity and bundling practices related to voice assistants, such as smart device makers being prevented from installing a second voice assistant on their devices.
The most popular voice assistant equipment in Europe includes Amazon.Com IncAlexa, Apple IncAccording to Siri and Alphabet Inc-CL C's Google Assistant, the global market for voice assistants is expected to double from 4.2 billion to 8.4 billion between 2020 and 2024.
EU competition law enforcement agencies have reportedly asked device makers to provide evidence that they were forced to pre-install Google Assistant and whether Alphabet Inc-CL C wants to ensure exclusivity by banning competing products on Android devices.
Alphabet Inc-CL C says Android offers more choices than any other mobile platform. "manufacturers can choose which voice assistants to install on their devices, and users can choose which assistants to use and install," the company said in an email.
The European Commission also wants to know whether Alphabet Inc-CL C might use the certification process for his new equipment to ensure exclusivity in another way, and the importance of the Google Play store to different ecosystems, the report said. Regulators are also checking whether users can use at least two voice assistants at the same time.
In the past decade, Alphabet Inc-CL C has been fined more than 8 billion euros by the European Commission in three different cases.