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EU to Google: Improve Antitrust Settlement or Face Charges

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Photo Credit: GettyThe European Union on Tuesday told Google it must strengthen its proposal to settle antitrust concerns or it will face formal charges from the commission.

In February, Google reached a tentative settlement with European regulators after a now 4-year-old investigation into allegedly favoring its own products and services over those of competitors in search results. As part of the settlement, Google agreed to display search results for its own services in the same way as those for rival companies, but did not have to pay a fine.

But Google’s settlement proposal has come under fire after widespread criticism and complaints, including from European politicians, competitors like Microsoft, and French and German publishers. On Tuesday, EU Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said the commission was swayed by “fresh evidence” and “solid arguments” from twenty formal complaints.

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Wealth Tax to Pay for EU Bail-Outs

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Senior advisers to Chancellor Angela Merkel are pushing for better-off households to pay towards the cost of any future bail-outs for the weaker members of the single currency.

The proposals, from members of Germany’s council of economic experts, raise the prospect of taxes being imposed on property in a country like Spain if its government was forced to seek a bail-out.

The council, known as the “Five Wise Men”, is often used to test new policies that are later adopted officially.

The German suggestion is the latest sign that Berlin is intent on imposing even tougher rules on weaker southern euro members in exchange for using its economic might to support their finances.

As well as inflaming tensions between Germany and its smaller southern partners, the suggestion could also mean that Britons with holiday homes are dragged deeper into the eurozone crisis.

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