EU urges internet companies to provide more transparency to customers.
The European Commission released new guidelines around transparency in search engines on Monday. The guideline is intended to make it easier for non-SEO professionals to understand how search engine algorithms work. The move is also aimed at enabling small businesses to make more effective use of social media marketing.
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This comes at the heels of Google’s December Core Updates, where the company has attempted to reduce ambiguity around elements that influence rankings. However, the company has been at the center of many controversies – particularly in the EU. Google’s preferential treatment of its own search ads attracted an antitrust fine in 2017 from the EU.
EU’s digital chief, Margrethe Vestager, said that the new guidelines would “set the standard for algorithmic ranking transparency.†The guidelines require internet companies to outline factors that algorithms use to rank content.
How Does the EU’s Latest Move Affect Marketers?
The EU is not alone in wanting to regulate big tech. The U.S House Judiciary Committee’s antitrust panel found that companies like Amazon, Apple, Google, and Facebook enjoy unchecked power across key business segments and have abused their position to stifle competition. Does a tighter regulatory environment mean that marketers will also be limited in the way they interact with customers?
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The short answer is, it depends. Recent decisions to regulate big tech stems from mounting evidence against algorithmic opacity. At a time when disinformation, unethical business practices, and political polarization have become a critical component of public discourse, internet companies will need to justify the basis on which they display or promote certain content.
For instance, if Google ranks Red Lobster as the best chain restaurant, it will need to explain the basis of its selection. Similarly, for ecommerce, hotel categorization will need to follow transparent ranking criteria.
Marketers will benefit from the increased trust in big tech, particularly in the case of search engines, where marketers have traditionally thrown everything against the wall to see what sticks. Transparency in search algorithms will also prompt multiple vendors to offer more comprehensive solutions that can accurately tell marketers what will work for sure and what will not.
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As internet companies continue to grapple with concerns around privacy, ethics, safety, and competition, it will be interesting to see how marketers’ behavior and attitudes change as we head into a more regulated ecosystem.