The U.K. is considering whether to assign Google “strategic market status” in search as a number of countries examine the tech giant’s search practices.

Under the new Digital Markets Competition Regime that came into effect in the U.K. earlier this year, the country’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said Monday it is launching a consultation on the matter.

The CMA seeks to ensure that Google’s search results are fair and transparent and give publishers greater control over how their content is used, including in AI-generated descriptions. The designation would give the watchdog more power to introduce targeted measures on the way Google operates search services in the U.K., to “promote fair competition” and “increase innovation.”

The CMA launched an investigation into Google in January, and heard from various organizations – including airlines, adult retailers and media publishers – about the impact of Google’s search practices on their businesses. A £5 billion class-action lawsuit was filed against the tech giant in April, alleging the company abused its dominance in the digital economy to exclude competitors from the overall search ad market.

“Google search has delivered tremendous benefits, but our investigation so far suggests there are ways to make these markets more open, competitive and innovative,” said CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell, who noted in a blog post that U.K. businesses spent more than £33,000 per advertiser on Google search ads last year.

If the designation is adopted, Google would have to enhance transparency for publishers, simplify access to rival search services (including AI assistants) and enable data portability for competitors. This could involve implementing choice screens for users to access different search providers, giving publishers more control over content usage in Google’s AI features and allowing users to transfer their data, such as search history.

The CMA emphasized that it’s not, so far, accusing Google of anti-competitive behaviour but has outlined potential changes the company could implement ahead of a final decision in October.

The news comes as Google faces an antitrust complaint in the U.S.

In April, a federal judge in Virginia concluded that the company illegally monopolized the markets for publisher ad servers and the market for ad exchanges, which sit between buyers and sellers. The judge, however, wrote that antitrust authorities failed to prove that Google had a monopoly in advertiser networks in the country.

The tech company is also facing another major antitrust case in Asia after the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) ruled it a monopolist and issued a cease-and-desist order at the end of an 18-month probe.

In Canada, Google is set to testify at a Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) hearing on Wednesday, which will examine the dynamics between broadcasters and streaming services as part of implementing the Online Streaming Act.