Europe’s top antitrust enforcer yesterday delivered an ultimatum to Google to put its house in order or risk hefty fines, in the most significant trans-Atlantic competition spat since Brussels waged its legal war with Microsoft a decade ago.
The US search group now has “a matter of weeks” to make a decision on whether to change its business voluntarily to address serious competition concerns even though it says they are unjustified.
Should Google refuse to compromise and settle with the European Commission, it faces formal charges that could lead to fines of up to 10 per cent of its global revenue and a Microsoft-style fight through the courts stretching for years.