Google has abused its market dominance in general internet search bygiving a separate Google product (initially called “ Froogle”, re-named “Google Product Search” in 2008 and “Google Shopping” in 2013) an illegal advantage in the separate comparison shopping market. - Google has systematically given prominent placement to its own comparison shopping service: Google's comparison shopping results are displayed, in a rich format, at the top of the search results, or sometimes in a reserved space on the right-hand side. They are placed above the results that Google's generic search algorithms consider most relevant. This happens whenever a consumer types a product-related query into the Google general search engine, in relation to which Google wants to show comparison shopping results. This means that Google's comparison shopping service is not subject to Google's generic search algorithms. - On the other hand, rival comparison shopping services are subject to Google's generic search algorithms, including demotions (which lower a search entry's rank in Google's search results). Comparison shopping services in the EEA are prone to be demoted by at least two different algorithms, which were first applied in 2004 and 2011, respectively. Evidence shows that even the most highly ranked rival comparison shopping service appears on average only on page four of Google's search results, and others appear even further down. In practice, this means consumers very rarely see rival comparison shopping services in Google's search results. The Commission Decision does not object to the design of Google's generic search algorithms or to demotions as such, nor to the way that Google displays or organises its search results pages (e.g. the display of a box with comparison shopping results displayed prominently in a rich, attractive format). It objects to the fact that Google has leveraged its market dominance in general internet search into a separate market, comparison shopping. Google abused its market dominance as a search engine to promote its own comparison shopping service in search results, whilst demoting those of rivals. This is not competition on the merits and is illegal under EU antitrust rules. Thus, Google's abuse of dominance started in the respective country from the moment Google began prominently displaying its comparison shopping service, whilst demoting rival services: - in January 2008 in Germany and the United Kingdom, - in October 2010 in France, - in May 2011 in Italy, the Netherlands and Spain, - in February 2013 in the Czech Republic, - in November 2013 in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Poland and Sweden. These cover all countries in the EEA in which Google currently offers its comparison shopping service. Effect of Google's illegal practices As explained above, Google's practices mean that its comparison shopping service appears much higher in Google's search results than rival comparison shopping services. This has had a significant impact on competition in comparison shopping markets because: - Appearance in Google's search results impacts on user clicks/traffic: Real-world consumer behaviour, surveys and eye-tracking studies demonstrate that consumers generally click far more on search results at or near the top of the first search results page than on results lower down the first page, or on subsequent pages, where rival comparison shopping services were most often found after demotion. a) In fact, even on desktops, the ten highest-ranking generic search results on page 1 together generally receive approximately 95% of all clicks on generic search results (with the top search result receiving about 35% of all the clicks). The first result on page 2 of Google's search results receives only about 1% of all clicks. The effects on mobile devices are even more pronounced given the much smaller screen size. b) Furthermore, the effects cannot just be explained by the fact that the first result is more relevant because evidence also shows that moving the first result to the third rank leads to a reduction in the number of clicks by about 50%.