UK court to Google: Expose algorithm or withdraw key piece of defense evidence
Litigant Foundem has retained an SEO as an expert and wants him to review confidential docs Google submitted in its defense.
Topic: Foundem
Google’s antitrust infringement continues ‘unabated’, Google Shopping competitors tell European Commission
Four months in, 19 rivals say too little has changed.
Google creates its own antitrust woes with poor communication over search listings
Have an issue with your listings in Google? Getting an official answer might be tough. And when that happens to a Google competitor, as it did with ProtonMail, it could come back to harm Google's defense from antitrust charges.
War And Peace: Bloomberg’s Massive History Of Google’s EU Antitrust Case
If you want a history of Google’s search battles with European antitrust regulators, a new article from Brad Stone (and colleagues) at Bloomberg will more than satisfy you. While there’s very little truly new information, the well-researched (and lengthy) piece is nearly comprehensive and captures all the intrigue, as well as the evolving nature of the dispute. The article is provocatively […]
Problems & Solutions: Analyzing The EU’s Antitrust Charges Against Google Over Shopping Search
The EU has raised four concerns about how Google has dominated shopping search. A close look at each charge and possible fixes that might emerge.
EU Says More Google “Concessions” Needed Before Antitrust Settlement
The vigorous lobbying efforts of Google critics FairSearch.org and Foundem’s SearchNeutrality.org seem to be paying off. Earlier today EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia told members of the European Parliament that additional “concessions” would probably be required of Google to settle the antitrust investigation against the company and avoid litigation and potential financial penalties. According to […]
Google (Finally) Gives EU A Formal Settlement Proposal As UK Mapping Rival Files Anti-Competitive Suit
Google has formally submitted its antitrust settlement proposal to the EU. Wait, didn’t that happen weeks ago? Apparently, it did not. While the parties have been talking for months (seems like years), Bloomberg reported today that Google had “formalized” its settlement proposal to avoid potential fines and other penalties. EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia is now […]
Open Letter To EU Competition Commissioner Exerts Pressure For Tougher “Vertical Search” Settlement With Google
Late last week, a group of Google critics, rivals and complainants sent an “open letter” to EU competition commissioner Joaquín Almunia asking him to focus on the “vertical search” or “search neutrality” dimensions of the Google antitrust case. The letter says, essentially, that of the “four areas of concern” raised by the EU over Google’s business practices, this […]
EU Antitrust Chief: Google “Diverting Traffic” & Will Be Forced To Change
While saying he’s “still investigating,” the head of the European Union’s antitrust regulatory body has told the Financial Times that he’s convinced Google is “diverting traffic” and that it will be forced to change its results. From the FT interview: “We are still investigating, but my conviction is [Google] are diverting traffic,” Mr. Almunia told the […]
After Years Of Anti-Competitive Complaints Foundem Sues Google In UK Court
Bloomberg reports Google is yet again being sued, this time by UK’s shopping search engine, for alleged anti-competitive practices. This comes a week after the FTC ruled that there is not enough evidence to prove search bias by Google in their search results. Foundem is seeking damages for revenue lost as a result of Google’s […]
Google Braces For Early 2012 (400-Page) EU Antitrust Report
According to dealReporter (via the Financial Times), the first stage of the formal European antitrust investigation against Google is almost complete. Google will shortly receive a 400-page “statement of objections” presenting findings from the European Commission’s investigation. It will detail Google’s alleged “abuse of dominance” and presumably — this is drawing an inference from the […]
EU Antitrust Complaints Against Google Grow To Nine
Anonymous complainants have thrown more fuel on the antitrust fire. Additional complaints have reportedly been filed against Google with European regulators. According to Reuters, the total number of complaints now comes to nine. Previously there were four formal complaints before the European Commission: Ciao (owned by Microsoft) Ejustice.fr (which has also filed a civil suit) […]
French Company Seeks $421M From Google For “Blacklisting”
Perhaps sensing “blood in the water,” a French company called 1plusV has sued Google in the Paris Commercial Court for the equivalent of $421 million. (The civil complaint was orginally filed on February 22, 2011.) An operator of vertical search sites, 1plusV is the corporate parent of legal search engine Ejustice.fr, one of three companies […]
EU Steps Up The Pressure: Pursuing Formal Anti-Trust Investigation Against Google
The European Commission has opened a formal antitrust investigation into whether Google abused its market power and position in Europe. A number of complaints have effectively been consolidated in the action, which comes after a preliminary inquiry by the EC. The individual complainants include Microsoft-owned shopping engine Ciao, price comparison site Foundem and French legal […]
The Incredible Stupidity Of Investigating Google For Acting Like A Search Engine
I did a search at Google today for “cars” and was shocked. Rather than list links allowing me to search for “cars” on Bing, Yahoo, Baidu, Voila, Naver and Yandex, Google instead favored its own search results. I’m glad the EU will be investigating whether this favoritism violates anti-trust laws. Consider the evidence. Here’s a […]
Texas Attorney General Investigating Google & Antitrust Issues
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott is conducting an investigation into Google’s business practices as they relate to search listings, in particular whether Google is manipulating its paid and editorial results in a way that violates antitrust laws. We received a tip about the investigation this week, and Google confirmed today that an investigation started in […]
The New York Times Algorithm & Why It Needs Government Regulation
The New York Times is the number one newspaper web site. Analysts reckon it ranks first in reach among US opinion leaders. When the New York Times editorial staff tweaks its supersecret algorithm behind what to cover and exactly how to cover a story — as it does hundreds of times a day — it […]
Google Wins Legal Battle Over AdWords Trademark Issue In Europe
European luxury goods maker LVMH (Luis Vuitton) sued Google in France over its AdWords policy allowing third parties, including LVMH competitors, to bid on its trademarked terms as keywords. The case originally arose when marketers bid on “Louis Vuitton” and turned out to be selling counterfeit Louis Vuitton items. The company won in France’s highest […]
Admitting Role In Google Anti-Trust Complaints Microsoft Complains Of Google “Lock In”
Responding to Google’s aggressive assertion that Microsoft is behind many of the anti-trust complaints that have been leveled against Google in the recent past, Microsoft in a blog post by Vice President and Deputy General Counsel Dave Heiner essentially says “get over it.” Google claimed that Microsoft was directly or indirectly responsible for the anti-trust […]
SearchCap: The Day In Search, February 25, 2010
Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Want To Speak @ SMX Advanced London? Here’s How We’re especially excited this year because we’ve changed the format of SMX London to be similar to our always sold-out SMX Advanced […]
Companies Ask Courts, Regulators To Restrain Google To Compensate For Own Competitive Failures
In a kind of parallel but interesting variation on the complaints filed in Europe against Google, now being investigated by the European Commission in a preliminary anti-trust inquiry, one of the European complainants Foundem has filed a brief with the US FCC concerning net neutrality. The complaints in Europe, broadly speaking, argue that Google has […]
Is Redmond The Puppet Master In Google EU Anti-Trust Complaints?
As both the Wall Street Journal and Telegraph UK are reporting, the EU has received complaints into Google’s competitive practices and potential abuse of its dominant market position in Europe. These come from some private companies, which we discussed in part before. One of those companies, the shopping engine Ciao, was acquired by Microsoft in […]