Google's European antitrust settlement is abandoned

[superclown2]

The strange deal hammered out with Almunia has been abandoned and a new competition commissioner will be taking it over soon. She is likely to be Danish politician Margrethe Vestager and she has a reputation of being no pushover.

[theguardian.com ]

[engine]

The deal is canned, but the Commission is has not given up on the issue.

[turbocharged]

Almunia's financial records should be monitored for the next decade. His hammering out such a sweet deal for Google left many with the impression he was paid off.

[superclown2]

Almunia's financial records should be monitored for the next decade. His hammering out such a sweet deal for Google left many with the impression he was paid off.

I couldn't possibly comment. 'Bizarre' would be a fair description of it.

[EditorialGuy]

To me, the strangest thing about the whole mess is the EU's willingness to let big-money lobbyists from Microsoft, Oracle, etc. have so much influence over the terms of the settlement. The interests of consumers (a.k.a. citizens of the EU) seem to have been ignored.

[superclown2]

The interests of consumers (a.k.a. citizens of the EU) seem to have been ignored.

It is in the interests of consumers that no one company abuses a monopoly position, thus squeezing out competition. For once these big corporations are acting for the benefit of consumers in opposing what some people describe as a disgraceful carve-up, but the rest of us, of course, consider to be a properly conducted negotiated proposed settlement. No doubt whatsoever about it and perish the thought.

Whether the said big corporations are altruistically working solely for the public good is a different matter.