Google could face a $9bn EU fine for rigging search results in its favour
Google could face a $9bn EU fine for rigging search
results in its favour
A seven-year investigation into the world's most popular
internet search engine was triggered by scores of complaints from both US and
European rivals
By Foo Yun Chee Brussels June 2, 2017 3 hours ago
EU antitrust regulators aim to slap a hefty fine on
Alphabet unit Google over its shopping service before the summer break in
August, two people familiar with the matter said, setting the stage for two
other cases involving the US company.
The European Commission's decision will come after a
seven-year investigation into the world's most popular internet search engine was
triggered by scores of complaints from both US and European rivals.
The EU competition authority accused Google in April 2015
of distorting internet search results to favour its shopping service, harming
both rivals and consumers.
The Commission and Google declined to comment. The US
company has in the past rejected the charges, saying that regulators ignored
competition from online retailers Amazon and eBay.
Fines for companies found guilty of breaching EU
antitrust rules can reach 10 per cent of their global turnover, which in
Google's case could be about $9bn of its 2016 turnover.
Apart from the fine, the Commission will tell Google to
stop its alleged anti-competitive practices but it is not clear what measures
it will order the company to adopt to ensure that rivals get equal treatment in
internet shopping results.
The regulator could set out general principles or
specific instructions for Google to follow, said an observer.
The Commission's tough line is in sharp contrast with the
US Federal Trade Commission which settled its own web search case with the
company in 2013 by requiring Google to stop “scraping” reviews and other data
from rival websites for its own products.
Google made three unsuccessful attempts to settle the
case with the previous European Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia in a
bid to stave off a possible fine and a finding of wrongdoing.
Mr Almunia's successor Margrethe Vestager, however, has
shown no willingness to settle with Google.
The company has also been charged with using its Android
mobile operating system to squeeze out rivals and with blocking competitors in
online search advertising related to its “AdSense for Search” platform.
The platform allows Google to act as an intermediary for
websites such as online retailers, telecoms operators or newspapers. The
Commission has warned of massive fines in both cases.
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