The European Parliament wants to chop Google up into different pieces

By Williams Pelegrin November 21, 2014

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Google is a pretty big company by anybody’s standards. For the European Parliament, it seems, El Goog is too big of a company. Originally a dominant player in the Internet space, thanks to its search engine, Google has since grown exponentially. Most of its recent success is due to its booming smartphone business. The European Parliament is worried about Google’s size and power, to the point where it’s currently considering a draft motion that would split Google into different companies, reports the Financial Times.

According to the outlet, European Union digital commissioner Günther Oettinger has waged a one-man mission against Google. Not only has he suggested slapping Google with taxes for showing copyright-protected content, but he has also voiced concerns over Google’s Android Auto in-car software and claims that its search results are not neutral.

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No matter how much the European Parliament wants to break Google up, however, it doesn’t have the power to do so, especially since Google is an American company. Nonetheless, passing such a measure would surely make a statement, and it could even convince the European Commission to take action. After all, the body intervened in 2007 to win a case against Microsoft after it alleged that the bundling of Internet Explorer with Microsoft’s Windows was a prime example of monopolistic behavior.

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Williams Pelegrin

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Williams is an avid New York Yankees fan, speaks Spanish, resides in Colorado, and has an affinity for Frosted Flakes. Send…

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