Antitrust moves up the stack

Brazil’s antitrust regulator is no longer looking only at app-store terms. It is asking whether Google’s use of publishers’ news in search and artificial intelligence harmed competition. (gov.br) The Administrative Council for Economic Defense, known as CADE, said on August 29, 2025 that it had deepened an administrative inquiry into Google’s conduct in online search tools and news. The case number is 08700.003498/2019-03. (gov.br) That inquiry began in 2019 over what CADE described as the alleged unlawful use of third-party news content in Google Search and Google News. CADE said the practice could have reduced organic traffic to media outlets’ websites and hurt the sector’s sustainability. (gov.br) The new phase pushes beyond the old fight over snippets and links. CADE’s questionnaires ask about algorithm changes, artificial intelligence, payment for news content, and the link between search and digital advertising. (gov.br) In plain terms, the regulator is examining the stack above distribution. Not just who gets installed on a phone, but who gets seen, summarized, and monetized once a user starts searching. (gov.br) CADE invited publishers, trade groups, academics, nongovernmental organizations and other interested parties to submit technical and factual evidence. The deadline for contributions was September 28, 2025 through CADE’s electronic filing system. (gov.br) Google is also dealing with older competition complaints lower in the stack. In a separate Brazil case, CADE signed a cease-and-desist agreement with Google on December 10, 2025 over Android contracts with device makers and mobile operators. (gov.br) That Android settlement covered three agreements: the Anti-Fragmentation Agreement, the Mobile Application Distribution Agreement, and the Revenue Sharing Agreement. CADE said those clauses could make access to key Android services depend on pre-installing or prominently placing Google Search and Google Chrome. (gov.br) Under the deal, Google Play licensing cannot be conditioned on pre-installing or promoting Google Search and Chrome, and Google must drop exclusivity clauses tied to search revenue-sharing payments. CADE said the obligations are meant to preserve competition in Brazil’s mobile-device market. (gov.br) Taken together, the Brazil cases show how antitrust scrutiny is moving from gatekeeping on devices to gatekeeping in answers. The next decision from CADE’s tribunal will test whether competition law can reach the way platforms turn other companies’ content into search and AI products. (gov.br)