Google must do more to prevent anti-trust fines from EU

[Half Monk 697]

Google will have to make a better effort to convince the European Union's anti-trust commission that it isn't violating any EU laws with its Internet search service. Today, the head of the European Commission, Joaquin Almunia, basically told Google to go back and try again after Google sent over some proposals to settle the matter back in April.

 

 

Reuters reports that, according to Almunia, "I concluded that the proposals that Google sent to us are not enough to overcome our concern." Google offered the EU ways to better label listings of its own services in its search results in Europe, along with links to rival search engines, including Microsoft's Bing, in its own results.

 

The Brussels-based industry group ICOMP, which includes Microsoft as one of its members, has already slammed Google's April proposals as a "non-starter" and now it seems the European Commission agrees. There's no word yet on if Google has a new deadline to send over updated proposals to the commission. In a statement,

Google spokesman Al Verney said simply, "Our proposal to the European Commission clearly addresses the four areas of concern." Google claims that it will continue to work with the commission.

 

If Google cannot come up with concessions that please the European Commission, Almunia could make the decision by the end of 2013 to fine Google as much as $5 billion for violating the EU's anti-trust laws.