LONDON – The UK’s Competition and Market Authority (CMA) announced Friday that it had launched an investigation into Google. Specifically, it’s looking into forthcoming changes proposed by Google’s Privacy Sandbox project.

CMA Investigating Changes to Google’s Privacy Sandbox

Google wants to disable third-party cookies on the Chrome browser and Chromium browser engine. They will be replaced by other tools that the company claims protects consumers’ privacy to a greater extent. However, there are legal and privacy concerns, the CMA noted. Essentially, it wants to check that Google is not misusing its dominant market position and is therefore opening a formal investigation. CMA Chief Executive, Andrea Coscelli, said:

As the CMA found in its recent market study, Google’s Privacy Sandbox proposals will potentially have a very significant impact on publishers like newspapers, and the digital advertising market. But there are also privacy concerns to consider, which is why we will continue to work with the ICO as we progress this investigation, while also engaging directly with Google and other market participants about our concerns.