Fitbit Public Preview adds food & water logging, more as app redesign comes to free users
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Google loses $2.7 billion antitrust fight in EU after seven years
Back in 2017, courts in the EU slapped Google with an unprecedented multi-billion euro fine over anti-competitive practices. After years of appeals, Google has officially lost in that case.
Expand Expanding CloseEU launches non-compliance investigation into Google Search and Play Store rules
Following up on the Digital Markets Act, the European Union is launching a “non-compliance investigation” into Alphabet, specifically centered around Google Search and specific rules in the Play Store.
Expand Expanding CloseThe European Union threatens to break up Google’s ad business
Google’s dominance over the online ad market has been scrutinized time and time again, and this week the European Union is expressing its concerns that Google has breached the EU’s antitrust laws, and that the company should break up its ad business.
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EU upholds antitrust ruling against Google’s actions on Android, drops fine to €4.1 billion
In 2018, the European Union ruled that Google’s app bundling with Android, essentially forcing its partners to include a long list of Google apps with their phones, was illegal. Google appealed that ruling, but the EU has just announced that it will uphold the decision, despite lowering the fine.
Expand Expanding CloseEU lawmakers push for all Android phones to to copy the Pixel 6’s five years of updates
While the Android ecosystem as a whole has been getting better about long-term support and the speed of updates, EU lawmakers are now pushing for a set standard for Android updates that just so happens to mirror what Google offers on the Pixel 6.
Expand Expanding CloseGoogle blasts EU for ignoring Apple as it fights $5 billion fine over Android & Play Store
While the US and other regions are shining more of a spotlight on Google and the Play Store, the EU has already issued a 2018 ruling that imposed Google with a $5 billion fine over anticompetitive practices on Android. Google is fighting that fine, and slamming EU regulators over turning a blind eye to Apple.
Expand Expanding CloseNow EU regulators are worried about Google’s FLoC initiative, too
As Google tests out its replacement for third-party cookies, the Federated Learning of Cohorts, the company has faced a lot of scrutinies for the initiative. Now, some regulators in the EU are raising concerns about FLoC as well that could spell trouble for the future of Google’s initiative.
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[Update: Extended] Google’s Fitbit deal to be investigated by EU through January 2021
Google announced late last year that it planned to purchase Fitbit to bolster its wearable portfolio, but the deal has been under scrutiny from the EU since day one. Several months later, it’s now looking like Google’s Fitbit deal will undergo a full investigation from the European Union.
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Google, Facebook, and Twitter commit to coronavirus misinformation reports per EU request
While other events may have started to overshadow the coronavirus pandemic, the virus is still very much a big deal around the globe. Now, in order with a request from the European Union, US tech giants including Google are going to produce regular reports regarding misinformation online about the coronavirus.
Google shifting UK user data to US, ditching GDPR protection in the process
GDPR has had a huge effect on how internet services work in the European Union, but following Brexit, Google may make some changes to how UK data is handled. A report from Reuters reveals that Google is preparing to shift data from UK users to be under US jurisdiction.
EU advisors: Google’s Fitbit acquisition has ‘high level of risk’ for privacy
Last year, Google announced that it had plans to acquire the popular wearable maker Fitbit, something that’s raised both hope and concern from users. This week, the European Data Protection Board is raising flags regarding Google’s Fitbit acquisition, calling it a privacy risk.
Google Search removing news ‘snippets’ in France following EU Copyright Directive
Google slapped with $1.69 billion fine by EU in AdSense antitrust case
Google has been fined $1.69 billion after EU regulators claimed that the tech company abused its own search system to essentially force third-party sites to use the AdSense network over other rival online ad serving companies.
Google adds tappable search suggestions to recipe searches on mobile
Update 2/2/17: More than a month after we told you about this, Google has made this new feature official on its blog.
It seems like Google is always playing with its search interface both on desktop and mobile, and today one eagle-eyed Alex Chitu spotted another addition on mobile: search suggestions when searching for recipes. The feature lets you refine searches for a food you might want to make…
Google releases 2016’s ‘Year in search’ with year’s top searches for people, events, and more [Video]
As 2016 comes to a close, many are taking the opportunity to look back at the year passed and all the events, announcements, people, and more that have made it great, or not so great. In 2016’s “Year in search,” Google has released a brief video montage of the year’s top events, and also several lists ranking the top searches for the year. Let’s take a look.
Google rolling out support for reserving fitness and wellness classes right from search results
As we head into 2017, people are starting to form their New Year’s resolutions and Google today is rolling out a new feature to make it easier for its users to stick to their fitness-released goals. In a blog post, Google detailed a new Reserve with Google feature that will allow users to easily book fitness and wellness classes right from Google.
Here’s how much Google seriously wants you to vote (in case you somehow forgot it’s Election Day) [Gallery]
Google has never really been shy about getting its users to participate in the democratic process. But this election cycle, the Mountain View seems to have kicked it up a notch. We’ve found banners and reminders placed throughout all of its services, from YouTube to Google Maps to Google Now. Check out our gallery below of all the different places Google might be pestering you…
Google search creating separate mobile index ‘within months,’ desktop index will be downgraded
Google has for some time prioritized mobile-friendly sites in search results, but it will soon be taking an even bigger step. Search Engine Land reports a keynote address by a Google exec advising that the company will be creating a completely separate mobile index, which will take priority over the original desktop one.
Google is going to create a separate mobile index within months, one that will be the main or “primary” index that the search engine uses to respond to queries. A separate desktop index will be maintained, one that will not be as up-to-date as the mobile index.
The plan reflects the fact that the majority of search traffic now comes from mobile devices, but the presentation raised as many questions as it answered, notes the site …
Donald Trump claims Google ‘suppressed bad news’ about Clinton, but that’s not how Search works
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump today blamed Google for making bad news about his opponent harder to find via Search. Speaking during a rally in Waukesha, Trump remarked that “Google search engine was suppressing the bad news about Hillary Clinton.”
Video: Donald Trump just accused Google of "suppressing the bad news about Hillary Clinton" pic.twitter.com/88TSU5VzJN
— Brandon Wall (@Walldo) September 29, 2016
Apparently you can find nearby businesses by searching ‘**’ on Google
Google is seemingly testing a new feature in search: the ability to quickly find locations nearby with a search query. It doesn’t appear to be working for everyone, but apparently when some search for “**” (don’t forget to drop the quotation marks), users get a list business that are physically near to you…
Google deal with LyricFind makes finding song lyrics a pleasant experience again
If you’ve ever Googled for song lyrics, you know what a messy experience it can be – half the sites proving to be just links to other sites, others looking really sketchy. For those in the US, though, things should be much simpler. Google has licensed lyrics from LyricFind, which in turn licenses them from labels, so that a search for a song title with ‘lyrics’ on the end should generate an immediate link.
Of course, Google is arriving rather late to the party …
EU set to file third set of antitrust charges against Google, this time over advertising
The European Union has already filed two sets of antitrust charges against Google, the first accusing it of manipulating search results to favor its own products, the second alleging that Google forces Android device manufacturers to install its own apps and set Google search as the default.
Last summer, it was reported that the company may face a third antitrust case in Europe, this time for abusing its dominant position in advertising, and the WSJ reports that the EU is currently preparing to files these charges, possibly next month …
The Brexit story in Google searches: buying gold, getting Irish passports, wondering what happened
Google Trends tells the story of the result of Britain’s decision to leave the European Union. Trending searches include a 500% spike in ‘buy gold,’ a doubling in searches on getting an Irish passport and some people apparently wondering what just happened …
Google will soon list possible health conditions when you search for symptoms
From sport results to maps, Google Search now shows a lot more than just 10 blue links. Especially useful on mobile, Knowledge Graph aims to show relevant information without requiring users to click through a webpage. In an update rolling out over the next few days, Google will now surface possible medical conditions when you search for symptoms.