Google handed out a record £2.14 billion fine!

Recent press reports highlight the problem of one company having a monopoly. In the case of the EU internet search market, it’s Google!

We know this and set our SEO services accordingly but as with any monopoly there are those who oppose and look to snare. The recent news is all about Google’s shops being given SERPs (search engine results page) priority over independent price comparison websites like Kelkoo. The EU have deemed this, after a 7 year investigation (really?) illegal.

This week Margrethe Vestager, the European competition commissioner, said Google…

“abused its market dominance as a search engine by promoting its own comparison shopping service in its search results, and demoting those of competitors.”

…and handed out a record £2.14 billion fine!

We can’t help thinking about the Tesco scenario and other shop giants who actively promote their own range of products through branding and marketing. Is this not the same?

We think it’s all about choice.
Google is number one because it’s the biggest, the best (design, speed, depth) and the search engine that invests the most. But you have a choice, there are other search engines and other shops to choose from.

If Tesco decide to promote their own products on the shop door, is that wrong. We don’t think so, or are we being pedantic. Is Google really a bad egg manipulating us web browsers and forcing us to buy their products because we’re all sheep and can’t think for ourselves.

Google are unlikely to pay the fine, it’s not really enforceable, like anything good or bad on the web, you can’t block it, even in North Korea!