Google reaches deal in EU antitrust case

Google, the owner of the world's largest search engine, reached a settlement to end the European Union's three-year antitrust probe after it offered to display results from rival search services.

Google will escape fines or any finding by regulators that it may have discriminated against competing sites, a year after the US Federal Trade Commission dropped a similar investigation by saying Google was motivated more by innovation than by trying to stifle competition.

The five-year pledge to the European Commission lets Google add new services or alter its search page as long as it grants three links to rival services next to its own specialised search results such as Google Shopping. Competitors will pay at least 3 cent to bid for a spot in a shaded box on some of Google's search pages.

"I believe that the new proposal obtained from Google after long and difficult talks can now address the commission's concerns," EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said in a statement.

“It provides users with real choice between competing services presented in a comparable way.”

Reacting to Mr Almunia’s announcement today, the European Newspaper Publishers’ Association (ENPA) said Google’s proposals to date do not preclude the company’s abusive promotion of its own services.

ENPA president Ivar Rusdal said if the Commission were to endorse Google’s anticompetitive behaviour, it would be a devastating blow to the future development and sustainability not only of the independent press sector.

“Legitimising Google’s practices would seriously threaten Europe’s core democratic values, such as press freedom, media pluralism and consumer access to information.”

The deal closes one of the EU’s most high-profile antitrust cases as the bloc’s antitrust chief seeks similar settlements with OAO Gazprom, Samsung Electronics and Visa Europe before he leaves office at the end of October.

Breaking the terms of such a pact carries a penalty of as much as 10 percent of global revenue. Microsoft was fined €561 million last year for violating its settlement with the EU.

Triggered by complaints from Microsoft and other Internet businesses, the EU’s probe examined allegations that Google promotes its specialist search services, such as Google News and Google Finance, copies competitors’ travel and restaurant reviews, and has agreements with websites and software developers that thwart competition in the advertising industry.

Criticism from groups representing Microsoft, Expedia and Nokia Oyj to previous offers by Google led to the EU seeking more changes before it would accept a settlement.

Regulators said they will write complainants before they finalize the settlement, rather than conduct a so-called market test among all competitors and consumers.

Bloomberg