EU FINE ON GOOGLE
Google, being the most used search engine has always been empowering our lives with many innovative products and services. Have you ever sensed any selfish means in the preferences shown as the result of your query? May be not! There we go wrong in judging the search engine but The European Union did it excellently by analysing the results of over 1.6 billion real search queries and approximately 5.2 terabyte of data and hence, charging the world’s number one search engine with the largest ever fine of £2.14bn in the history of antitrust cases.
Google has been charged such a hefty fine for abusing its authority to create its dominance in online shopping domain. Illegally modifying its searches to google gave its sites an edge over the competitor companies. This modification not only turns down consumers from getting a real choice but also denying the rival companies a fair chance to invest their merits and innovate. Google has also been accused earlier for such instances by the competitor like yelp accusing google for its way it lists their own restaurants reviews over those of the competitors. This step taken EU could be a changing step towards such issues.
After the charges were proved, EU has ordered the Silicon Valley Giant to stop its illegal activities in the next 90 days and has to explain how it will reform its ways or will face fine up to £10.6 million a day that equates nearly to 5% of the average daily worldwide turnover of its present company ‘ALPHABET’.
On being the most dominant player, EU has been searching for misappropriations, where google might have played mischievous tactics, either in maps, places etc.
Of all this, the major problem for google comes up not to the fines charged nor even the change to its shopping lists. The problem lies in the fact that regulators now have forced google to change the way it handles its search. While the company has always been retooling its search results not to look like just a list but much more than that Google’s idea of expansion into new areas such as voice controlled virtual assistants etc., may get chipped away with this order.
Though, it might bring a positive change for the ongoing competitive environments but we hope it is too early as google is planning to appeal a case.
So, let us stay tuned, what it comes out to be.
