France fines Google $1.3m for deceptive classification of hotels

The French consumer safety and competitive market regulator on Monday said it had imposed a fine of 1.3 million dollars (1.1-million-euro) on two of Google’s affiliate offices for the deceptive classification of hotels.

This had misinformed tourists and harmed the interests of hotel owners.

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“An inquiry by the General Directorate for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF), launched in 2019, showed the misleading nature of the classification of hotels by Google, especially on its search engine.

“The companies Google Ireland Ltd and Google France have corrected their practices and, after agreement of the Paris prosecutor, have agreed to pay a fine of 1.1 million euros,” the watchdog’s statement read.

The watchdog found that Google had used its own criteria in ranking French hotels, which led to discrepancies in the number of stars awarded to accommodations by Google and by the country’s official agency Atout France.

The probe conducted covers some 7,500 hotels, the statement noted. (NAN)