Google warned of huge fines if it fails to nix 'dominance in web searches' by July
Google must come up with answers over allegations that it uses its dominance in web searches to promote its own products by early next month or face regulatory intervention, the European Commission has warned.
Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said the firm must start to negotiate on remedies to protect competition or face potentially heavy fines.
"By early July, I expect to receive from Google concrete signs of their willingness to explore this route," The Telegraph quoted Almunia, as saying.
He stressed that if the search giant does not negotiate, regulators will issue a formal 'statement of objections' in response to complaints by over a dozen rivals that it abuses its dominant position in general web to promote its own secondary services such as price comparison.
"In case we engage in negotiations to address our concerns and the proposals we receive turn out to be unsatisfactory, formal proceedings will continue through the adoption of a statement of objections," Almunia said.
According to the paper, after the statement of objections, the Commission could impose fines of up to 10 percent of Google's global revenues, which were 37.9 billion dollars in 2011.
The European Commission's launched its investigation in November in response to a series of complaints from smaller web firms, including the British price comparison service Foundem, which said Google had relegated it in general results.
It has called for Google to be forced to adopt "search neutrality", meaning it would not be allowed to promote its own services in general search results.
Source: Europe News.Net
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