Google Agrees to Adjust European Search Results Following Criticism from Competitors
The move is designed to head off charges which could be levied against the company by European Union antitrust regulators under the Digital Markets Act.
Google has offered to tweak its search results in Europe, after several smaller rivals complained about getting lower traffic to their search engines.
European Union antitrust regulators are also considering levying charges against the company under the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Under the legislation, which came into force last year, Google is not allowed to favor its own products and services on its platform.
The world’s most popular internet search engine previously tried to address conflicting demands from price-comparison sites, hotels, airlines, and small retailers.
But three groups said the number of people clicking on their direct bookings has fallen by 30 percent since Google made the changes.
If found in violation of the DMA, Google could be fined as much as 10 percent of their annual global turnover.
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Bethell said Google would allow users to choose between comparison sites and supplier websites, and allow rivals to show prices and pictures on their websites, and new ad units for comparison sites.
He said, “Over the past three years we have engaged extensively with the European Commission and industry, including hosting more than 100 conferences and roundtables to seek feedback on these and other DMA changes.”
“We acknowledge that the DMA requires some significant changes to our online services in Europe, but we do not believe that the end goal is to prevent search engines from innovating and competing,” he added.
Bethell said, “While many stakeholders are happy with our changes, a few sites continue to demand more, such as a complete ban on anything that’s more sophisticated than a simple blue link to a website. This would prevent Google from showing people useful information like prices and ratings.”
Google said it also planned to remove the map showing the location of hotels and the results beneath the map, as part of a short test to gauge interest. This will only apply in Germany, Belgium, and Estonia.
‘Does Not Benefit Consumers’
Bethell said, “We’re very reluctant to take this step, as removing helpful features does not benefit consumers or businesses in Europe.”
“We think the latest proposal is the right way to balance the difficult trade-offs that the DMA involves,” he added.
The DOJ, alongside 38 states and territories, outlined its proposed remedy, which came after a ruling earlier this year found the tech giant violated antitrust laws by maintaining an illegal monopoly over the online search market.
The proposal called for Google to divest its Chrome browser, which regulators argue has been used to reinforce the company’s monopoly by directing search traffic exclusively to Google’s platforms.
The government is exploring the potential divestiture of the Android operating system, citing its role in locking competitors out of the market.
In August, U.S. District Judge Anit Mehta ruled Google, which processes 90 percent of U.S. internet searches, had built an illegal monopoly in both online search and the search text ads market.
Last month Google’s parent company Alphabet posted healthy third-quarter revenue results, expectations, boosted by steady growth in digital advertising, and an AI-driven jump in demand for its cloud services.
Digital advertising sales increased from $59.65 billion to $65.85 billion.
Alphabet also owns YouTube, Android and AdSense, a program which allows internet publishers to provide tailored text, images, video, and interactive media advertisements targeted to their audience.
Reuters contributed to this report.
