European MPs pass motion calling for Google break up

[HEXUS]

Google's search and other services should be separated to prevent abuse say MEPs.

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[crossy]

Google is responsible for nearly 90 per cent of the general web search market in Europe, and has already been under investigation by the executive arm of the EU for alleged monopoly abuse for using its dominance to suppress competition for several years.

So they've been under investigation "for several years" and yet there's no tangible results from that investigation? Sounds suspiciously like the kind of useless jobs-for-the-boys quango that UKIP and the other anti-EU folks have been complaining about.

Google's rivals have requested the commission to investigate four areas, according to the report:

o The manner in which Google displays its own vertical search services compared with other, competing products
o How Google copies content from other websites - such as restaurant reviews - to include within its own services
o The exclusivity Google has to sell advertising around the search terms people use
o Restrictions on advertisers from moving their online ad campaigns to rival search engines

Does anyone seriously expect a company NOT to push their own services instead of the competition? Plain common-sense would surely suggest that you probably don't even want to metion the competition!

I'm also not convinced by point 3 either.

What worries me though is the bullish response by the US - they seem to be going through one of those horrible "flyin' the ole red, white and blue" pseudo-patriotic spells at the moment. Last thing anyone wants or needs is one of those pointless tit-for-tat trade sanction exchanges.

It's going to sound like mealy-mouth Google-fandom, but maybe Google got into the "dangerous" position that they're in because they were offering the best product - whether that's search, mail or whatever. So if the "rivals" had upped their game then perhaps there wouldn't be a desire to shackle Google. Oh, and I think a forced breakup is a pretty daft move. Obviously going on the Yes Minister-stated logic "We need to do something. This is something. Therefore we need to do this"

[bledd]

###### EU.

All they do is bugger things up for everyone else.

All those stupid 'N' versions MS had to create of Windows. That ridiculous 'browser choice' menu.


Don't like MS?, don't use their products
Don't like Google?, don't use their products

Idiots with nothing better to do.

[hellig]

And who will fill the void if google gets pushed to share, microsoft, like they opened up for others when it came to the browser, you still have to have it on your computer or windows goes boom

[cjs150]

The EU parl is a waste of space on tech matters. All they have ensured is that the next tech giant that emerges will not be a European company. If google was expanding into Europe now they would do so in a way that ensured they had no employees in Europe, no servers, no companies so that there was nothing EU law could apply to.

EU is not tackling this based on anti-competition but rabid anti-americanism

[eatonm62]

Google is responsible for nearly 90 per cent of the general web search market in Europe, and has already been under investigation by the executive arm of the EU for alleged monopoly abuse for using its dominance to suppress competition for several years.


Hmmm, sounds like the EU is after a big pay day from another poor company that happens to have done well.

[jim]

Google has 90% of the market - it would be weird if they weren't being investigated.

I doubt this is the answer, but the EU wants to show that it can fight back against American corporates, and that's precisely what this is - a demonstration of power. Right now, I think Google is the second highest funder of lobbying to the EU, and a US government representative has threatened the EU about clamping down on Google.

It's going to a very interesting dance, this.

[Saracen]

....

It's going to a very interesting dance, this.

Sure is. The US is used to getting it's own way, but here it faces a unified block of 500m relatively wealthy consumers.

Personally, few things would cheer me up more than Google self-imploding and vanishing up it's own fundamental orifice .... but I somehow don't see the EU pulling it off.

[barry2811]

Google is evil. The whole shady SEO industry is testament to that.

[kingpotnoodle]

Build best search product, do well, gain dominant market position... and get clobbered by the EU for being successful.

Unless they can actually *prove* unlawful conduct then the EU really need to just STFU. Google seem to be in the firing line mainly because nobody else can turn out a competent search engine to compete with it, search isn't something that would command a whole lot of loyalty as it's stupidly easy to change the site you go to. You can't really call Microsoft an oppressed minnow, yet even with the many ways they have to foist Bing upon us even they cannot compete with Google's search popularity...

As for pushing your own services? What business doesn't, when do you go into a high street store and see them suggest you go elsewhere for accessories? Lets not forget most Google services are free to use (or low cost, i.e. Google Apps for Business) and therefore quite beneficial to consumers and EU businesses.