EU: Google gets second extension in antitrust case

Google, the world’s most popular Internet search engine, has been given an extra two weeks to counter European Union charges of abusing its market power in a dozen EU countries and stave off a possible billion-euro fine.

The European Commission has extended the deadline for replying to the charges to Aug. 31 from July 17, a Google spokesman said Thursday.

This is the second extension for the company, which had originally been told to respond to the commission’s charge sheet, or statement of objections, by July 7.

The commission, which in April accused Google of distorting Web search results to favor its shopping service, confirmed that it had accepted the company’s request for additional time to reply.

“In line with normal practice, the commission analyzed the reasons for the request. As a result, it has granted an extension allowing Google to fully exercise its rights of defense,” commission spokesman Ricardo Cardoso said.

Full content: The New York Times

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