Australian court decided that Google is not responsible for advertising on its pages.

The Supreme Court of Australia ruled that Google is not responsible for the content of advertising messages on its website, reports Reuters. Thus, the court put an end to the six-year lawsuit between Google and the Australian Commission on Competition and Consumer Protection (ACCC), which accused the search giant of misleading users with advertising messages.

The case was connected with Google’s search results in 2006 and 2007, when Honda Australia showed a paid advertisement for Carsales, a competitor to Honda, on the search query Honda Australia . ACCC stated that the advertisement is deceptive because it suggests that Carsales is associated with Honda Motor Co Ltd.

Initially, a federal court ordered Google to ensure that paid search ads did not mislead users. However, five judges of the Supreme Court of Australia unanimously ruled in favor of Google, overturning the decision of the lower court.
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The judges said that Google did not create advertising links, and the company is not responsible for the messages in the links. “Ordinary and reasonable users of the Google search engine would understand that advertisements in advertising links were made by advertisers and would not conclude that Google accepted or approved the declarations,” the court noted.