Google clears another step in EU antitrust case hurdle

BRUSSELS — Google has taken another step toward settling a European antitrust investigation focusing on whether the Internet giant is abusing its dominant position of online search and advertising markets.

Google Inc. has submitted a list of remedies in legally binding form to address the concerns voiced by the European Commission, which acts as the 27-nation bloc’s antitrust authority, the body’s spokesman Antoine Colombani said Monday.

He added that they will shortly be put to a market test to see whether they will be sufficient, but declined to elaborate on how long it might still take to reach a settlement in the three-yearold investigation.

The Commission is probing whether Google unfairly favors its own services in its Internet search results. Google’s search engine — the world’s most influential gateway to online information and commerce — enjoys a nearmonopoly in Europe.

The major concession offered by Google is widely expected to center on more clearly labeling search results stemming from its own services such as YouTube, Google Maps or its shopping search function.

In addition, Google is supposed to offer remedies on the three other main areas the Commission has criticized. Those centered on how Google displays content from other websites, how it manages the ads appearing next to its search results, and how its actions affect marketers’ ability to buy ads on rival networks.