Here’s how the EU has ordered Google to change its search results
The EU has demanded Google make extensive changes to its search results, claiming manipulated search results are ruining competition.
The search giant is being investigated by the European Commission over alleged anti-trust law violations.
Google has been accused of promoting Google services ahead of its competition in search rankings, reports the Wall Street Journal. This doesn’t sit well with EU authorities, which claim that Google is abusing its position of dominance.
The Commission is concerned that users do not necessarily see the most relevant results in response to queries – this is to the detriment of consumers, and stifles innovation.
Google disagrees with these allegations, claiming that users have more choices than ever before. In the blog post “The Search for Harm”, senior vice president of Google search Amit Singhal writes:
“While Google may be the most used search engine, people can now find and access information in numerous different ways—and allegations of harm, for consumers and competitors, have proved to be wide of the mark.”
This isn’t the first time Google has clashed with the European justice system, as the drawn-out court battle for the “right to be forgotten” was settled after several years in May 2014.