The EU opened formal proceedings against Google to determine if it had utilized market power to push down the rank of other search and price comparison sites. The investigation was opened after the Commission received several complaints from other search providers alleging that Google was unfairly favoring its own search results. The EC will also investigate three alleged practices: (1) whether Google intended to boost its own placement, and shut-out rivals by knocking down the rank of other search providers; (2) whether Google requires “exclusivity obligations” from advertising partners; and (3) whether Google lowered the quality score of competitor’s sponsored links. Google denied the claims and stated that it would cooperate with the investigation.