The ACCC had claimed that sponsored links displayed by Google between 2005 and 2008 had conveyed misleading and deceptive representations.  The case involved searches using keywords such as Harvey World Travel and Honda, which were redirected to competitors websites.

Google argued that it had not engaged in publishing the sponsored links because it had not endorsed the message conveyed by the response to the user’s query. Google argued that it had no input at all into the creation of the sponsored link and the High Court agreed unanimously today, allowing the appeal.

The High Court said that ordinary and reasonable users of the Google search engine would have understood that the representations conveyed by the sponsored links were those of the advertisers and would not have concluded that Google adopted or endorsed the representations.

While the ads were created using Google’s Adwords facility, the fact that they were misleading was found not to be a liability of Google’s. The decision will be welcomed by internet services and intermediaries, as it limits the liability of those that provide technological services.