The European Union is asking Google to propose more concessions in its attempt to settle an antitrust investigation that’s looking into the company’s search practices in the region, and the EU wants those concessions in the coming weeks, Reuters reports, not later down the road. “We need more and we need more not during the next year, we need more during the next weeks,” EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said, explaining to reporters that he is still waiting for Google to provide a response to his opinion that concessions offered so far are not enough to address the EU’s concerns.
Almunia is referring to a statement he made in mid-December last year, when he said Google’s recent proposed concessions were not acceptable as “they are not proposals that can eliminate our concerns regarding competition and in particular regarding the way Google’s rivals in vertical search – search for products and price comparison, restaurants, etc. – are being treated.” This wasn’t the first time Google’s attempts to end the antitrust inquiry were shot down, and the company faces fines up to $5 billion in case it won’t be able to settle the case.
Recently, Microsoft and others revealed they were not happy with Google’s Search concessions, citing an eye-tracking study that showed European Internet users have been unofficially trained to use Google Search in a certain way that even after the search-related concessions, results showing Google services still have better placement than competing online resources.
