The European Union accused Google on Wednesday of cheating
competitors by distorting Internet search results in favor of its
Google Shopping service and also launched an antitrust probe into its
Android mobile operating system. In a statement, Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said the US tech giant, which dominates Internet search engines globally, had been sent a Statement of Objections -- effectively a charge sheet -- to which it can respond.
"I am concerned that the company has given an unfair advantage to its own comparison shopping service, in breach of EU antitrust rules," she said. "If the investigation confirmed our concerns, Google would have to face the legal consequences and change the way it does business in Europe."
The Commission, whose control of antitrust matters across the wealthy 28-nation bloc gives it a major say in the fate of global corporations, can fine firms up to 10 percent of their annual sales -- or a penalty of over $6 billion for Google.
If it finds that companies are abusing a dominant market position, the EU regulator can also demand sweeping changes to their business practices, as it did with US software giant Microsoft in 2004 and chip-maker Intel in 2009.
Read more: Business - EU files antitrust charges against Google, opens Android probe - France 24
