Google Rejects EU Antitrust Charges

A woman hovers a mouse over the Google and European Union logos in Sarajevo, in this April 15, 2015 photo illustration. The European Union accused Google Inc on Wednesday of cheating competitors by distorting Internet search results in favour of its Google Shopping service and also launched an antitrust probe into its Android mobile operating system. (PHOTO CREDIT: Reuters/Dado Ruvic)

Google formally rejected European Union antitrust charges that its business practices stifle competition and restrict consumer choices, setting the stage for regulators to decide next year if they will levy hefty fines against the Internet giant.

“We can’t agree with a case that lacks evidence and would limit our ability to serve our users,” Kent Walker, Google’s senior vice president and general counsel, wrote in a blog post on Thursday.

Europe’s top antitrust official Margrethe Vestager has accused Google of unfairly promoting its shopping service and undercutting competitors by limiting their ability to place search ads on third party websites.

“We will carefully consider Google’s response before taking any decision on how to proceed and cannot at this stage prejudge the final outcome of the investigation,” the European Commission said in an emailed statement.

Click here to read more.

SOURCE: USA Today, Jessica Guynn