FairSearch EU Counsel Thomas Vinje’s Statement on Google’s Proposal to the European Commission

It has been reported that Google has submitted a proposal to the European Commission in response to Vice President Joaquín Almunia’s offer to have the company propose remedies to the four potential violations of EU antitrust and consumer protection laws that Almunia identified after an almost two-year investigation of Google’s business practices.

The following is a statement of Thomas Vinje, EU counsel to the FairSearch coalition, on Google’s proposal to the EC:

“The FairSearch coalition looks forward to engaging with the European Commission and Vice President Joaquín Almunia as interested third parties provide feedback on appropriate remedies to restore a competitive marketplace. We hope the proposals reflect a greater willingness to end Google’s anti-competitive behavior than has its consistent rejection of the concerns that Mr. Almunia identified after collecting evidence for nearly two years.”

For more background on the investigation, please see this previous blog post from FairSearch.