Competition: what Google offers in Brussels - The Expansion

The European Commission on Thursday launched a consultation on the commitments offered by Google, suspected bias competition in the markets for search and online advertising. It will build on the results to determine if it can, as she wishes, close the file “after the summer holidays.”

Brussels investigation was opened in November 2010 following several complaints, one was from the internet portal Ciao, acquired by Microsoft in 2008. Microsoft joined the complaint in 2011. The U.S. giant is particularly suspected to highlight in its links, its own vertical search engines, that is to say specialized in a specific field such as travel or restaurants to ensure preferential treatment compared other specialized search engines.

proposals Google

Among the remedies it offers for a period of five years and were announced by the Commission, Google plans to label the links to its own research specialized subject of preferential treatment, so that users can distinguish them from other results and make their choice knowingly. Google intends to highlight these preferential links with a clear identification, such as a frame, and posting links to three specialized services nearby competitors of its own services and a clearly visible by users.

proposals motor involve other concerns of the European Commission, including the use by Google content sites owned by third parties, including the media, without their permission. The American search engine has to offer all websites to refuse the use of their content in its own specialized services , while pledging not to penalize these sites by low ranking in the results of general research. The newspapers will provide a mechanism to be able to control their content in Google News.

Google also cease imposing exclusivity clauses , especially in contextual advertising. These are advertisements that appear as text links or images in connection with the content of a search or a web page.

In October 2010, Google had already committed before the French Competition Authority to make it more transparent and predictable for advertisers rules applied by its AdWords advertising.

Google also offers an independent agent to assist the Commission in monitoring monitoring these commitments .

Decision after the summer holidays at the earliest

Interested parties now have one month to submit their observations. If the Commission considers that these commitments are sufficient, it may make them binding on Google. Otherwise, it could impose a fine of up to 10% of global annual turnover.

European Commissioner for Competition Joaquin Almunia, expressed repeatedly in recent months for his preference for through an agreement with Google solution. His spokesman, Antoine Colombani, said Thursday during a press conference that the Commission would make a decision “after the summer holidays in the best case.”

Questioned by AFP, a spokesman for Google in Brussels, declined to comment, saying only that the group continued to “cooperate with the Commission.”

The complainants request more time

plaintiffs and Google’s competitors, including Microsoft, but also sites Expedia and Tripadvisor travel sites or price comparison Twenga Foundem and grouped in FairSearch Icomp and organizations have responded by calling for more time the month was granted to bring their analysis, noting that “Google has a year to prepare proposals published today.”

After a quick review of these proposals, FairSearch has already ruled Thursday that the commitments of Google “does not put an end to preferential treatment (its own products), which was the subject of the complaint of 17 companies. “

“The fact to label the results will do little or nothing to prevent Google to manipulate search results and discriminate vis-à-vis competing services,” responded his side the European organization Consumer Beuc.

Google, which controls about 70% of the online search in the United States and more than 90% in the European Economic Area, was cleared in early January by the U.S. court in a case of obstruction to the very competition similar to that taught by the European Commission, with commitments of conduct.