Google pays $1.3M fine over misleading star ratings for hotels

London, Feb 16 : A French watchdog has slapped a 1.1 million euros ($1.3 million) fine on Google over misleading star ratings for hotels on its Search engine in France.
Google has agreed to pay the fine, according to the Directorate General for Competition, Consumption and the Repression of Fraud (DGCCRF).
“An investigation by the DGCCRF, initiated in 2019, demonstrated the misleading nature of the ranking of hotels by Google, in particular on its search engine,” the watchdog said in a statement late on Monday.
The tech giant applies its own algorithmic system of ratings for hotels applied via Search and Google Maps.
The DGCCRF probe revealed that the tech giant had replaced the standard classification system of the public tourist board with a star rating system powered by its own criteria.
Google applied the new system to more than 7,500 establishments, reports TechCrunch.