ACCC sues Trading Post and Google over sponsored links 

In what it describes as a global first, the ACCC is suing the Trading Post and Google over sponsored links on their websites in 2005 which are alleged to contravene s 52 and 53(d) of the Trade Practices Act 1974 ...

According to the ACCC's Press Release, the Trading Post is being sued

when the business names "Kloster Ford" and "Charlestown Toyota" appeared in the title of Google sponsored links to Trading Post's website. Kloster Ford and Charlestown Toyota are Newcastle car dealerships who compete against Trading Post in automotive sales.

Google is being sued 

It is rather hard to see how the second allegation against Google could succeed if what Google was doiing in 2005 is the same as it does now as "sponsored links" seem to be pretty clearly identified these days.  Surely even Australian consumers understand this in this day and age?

It is a bit harder to understand what the first complaint against Google and the Trading Post is.  The Sydney Morning Herald report, here, seems to suggest that the company names appeared as the title of ads for other companies.  If so, that would surely be misleading.  In such a scenario, I wonder if Google will have the benefit of the s 85 defence?

If the complaint is just that one might do a Google search for, say, Kloster Ford, and the results included a sponsored link to the Trading Post (apparently a competitor?), that shouldn't be any different to any other sponsored link.  If the link was sufficiently identified as a sponsored link, how can it be misleading.  If the links were not as clearly identified as sponsored links in 2005 as they are now, what's the point in bringing the action?

ACCC press release here.