The European Commission has launched an antitrust investigation of Google, following complaints from rivals that the internet giant has used its dominant search engine to promote the company's other services. Google denies the allegations, and promises to work with regulators to "address any concerns." Competitors, including Microsoft, say Google gives "preferential treatment" to its own services in search results and lowers rankings for rival services. Is this a petty complaint or is Google on the brink of a reputation breakdown?
This isn't minor: "This could mean trouble for Google," says JP Manninen at Venture Beat, provided, of course, that investigators turn up hard proof that Google has been using "anti-competitive practices." The European Commission is no "pushover." It has taken on tech giants before, and fined Microsoft $794 million in 2004 over antitrust issues. Google will take this seriously if it's smart.
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