In 1998, Google just did search. Now, the American multinational is the biggest player in web advertising. It runs much of the world's smartphones and tablets, logging locations as it goes. Earlier this year, it bought a thermostat company with a view to being part of tomorrow's smart home. Its Street View aims to collect 360-degree views of everywhere (including underwater), and as The National has reported, sent a camera on a camel's back to Liwa Oasis. And then there is the driverless car. Is Google really going to take over the world? Not if the European Union (EU) has its way.
Today, its parliament will debate “the need to unbundle search engines from other commercial services”. Google is not named but everyone knows it’s the target. This initiative is separate from the European Commission’s ongoing antitrust investigation of Google’s practices. Last year, Microsoft became the first company to be fined by the EU for smothering competition. Now, Google is in its sights. Keyword search: enable competition.