Critics say Google's offer to change search results in Europe is inadequate

Google has angered online shopping websites with what they say is a derisory offer to alter its search results in Europe.

The internet giant, which was fined €2.4bn (£2.1bn) by the EU in June for exploiting the power of its search engine to promote its separate online shopping service, has proposed a set of changes that it hopes will see the company avoid further fines.

However, the offer, which has not yet been made public, has been attacked by online shopping sites, who say the changes would simply see Google take all of the industry’s profits.

According to sources familiar with the proposals, Google has offered to include links to rival price comparison sites among the prominent results for online shopping searches such as those for washing machines and televisions.

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Google’s own shopping service currently occupies these positions, and the charge that the company is exploiting its dominance of internet search to give its shopping arm a leg up was behind June’s record antitrust fine.

Under the proposed changes, other sites would be included within the results under the proposals, with Google holding an automatic online auction to decide whose sites would feature there. However, Google's own shopping service would also be able to bid.

This means that other price comparison sites would be bidding not only against each other, but also with Google itself for the sought-after search positions.

Foundem, a British price comparison site whose original complaints against Google a decade helped kick ago off the EU’s investigation, said the proposals would mean all the profits in the industry simply moving to Google in the form of advertising fees.

“This would only serve to escalate the inability of these services to compete against Google, in the face of [its] immensely powerful search manipulation practices, particularly as the company these competitors would be forced to hand their profits to would also be Google,” said Shivaun Raff, Foundem’s chief executive.

It is understood that Google’s own bids for slots in search results would be capped by a price ceiling, in order to prevent the company from squeezing competitors out of a bidding war.

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However, one opponent of Google said the limit would not have much of an effect. “The problem is its very difficult to outbid Google,” they said.

Google submitted its proposals last month and must implement them by next Thursday. It is up to the commission, rather than the complainants, to judge it they are adequate. European competition commissioner Margrethe Vestgaer recently said the proposals were heading in the right direction.

If they are not judged to be up to scratch Google can be fined 5pc of daily turnover. The company declined to comment.