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EC may revisit Google search settlement - report
2014-07-23 08:31:00| Telecompaper Headlines
(Telecompaper) The European Commission may revisit ts settlement with Google over competition allegations in the search market after a growing number of complaints from Google rivals and customers about the deal. People familiar with the matter told the Financial Times that the EC competition authorities will take a decision in September after they complete a consultation with the market on the proposed settlement. EU competition commissioner Joaquin Almunia previously expressed confidence that the package addressed the main antitrust concerns, in spite of heavy criticism from some fellow EU commissioners and French and German ministers. However, he also made clear that he would take account of any new arguments made by rivals, who recently received letters explaining how their complaints might be rejected. According to the report, the EC is now reassessing two elements of the draft settlement: whether more prominent visibility for rival links is enough to remedy the diversion of traffic to Google services, and the auction mechanism where rivals bid for links alongside Google's specialised search results. Another issue is whether to expand the scope of the investigation to include complaints made against Google services such as YouTube, which may be partly related to Google's search practices.
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Category:Telecommunications