European regulators to ask Google to change search practices
European regulators are set to ask Google to change the way its own products are displayed in search.
Google may now face a tough time with European regulators over its alleged manipulated search results after the search engine giant was forced to change its advertising policy following anti-trust settlement with the U.S. regulators.
Joaquín Almunia, the European Union’s competition chief, told the Financial Times on Thursday that the European regulators are likely to seek making Google change the way its own products are displayed in search, otherwise the company may be slapped with hefty fines for “diverting traffic” away from competitors’ products.
“We are still investigating, but my conviction is [Google] are diverting traffic,” Almunia told the Financial Times.
According to reports, the European regulators have been probing allegations that Google has been exploiting dominant position in the online search sphere to drive traffic to its other services such as Google Flight Search or Google Maps.
“They are monetising this kind of business, the strong position they have in the general search market and this is not only a dominant position, I think –- I fear -– there is an abuse of this dominant position,” added Almunia.
Back in India, Google has also faced similar charges. In August 2012, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) launched a probe against Google over allegations of anti-competitive practices made by a consumer advocacy group. Read more about the development here.
Source: Mashable