ROME (Reuters) - Italy's antitrust agency has launched an investigation into online search giant Google and its parent company Alphabet over alleged unfair commercial practices, the regulator said on Thursday.

The request Google sends to its users for consent to link to its services "could constitute misleading and aggressive commercial practice", the watchdog said in a statement, adding that the information it provides is "incomplete and misleading."

Google was not immediately available for comment.

(Reporting by Giulia Segreti, editing by Gavin Jones)