Matt Brittin told Politico that the search giant is now trying to adjust its Silicon Valley image to lose its perception as a “West coast-driven, liberal values thing.” He said “We want to be pragmatic and get to a point where we can continue to invest in building great products for everyone”, admitting “We don’t always get it right.”
The EU has repeatedly made antitrust allegations against Google. Despite being US-based, Google dominates the European search scene far more than at home at over 90 percent of total market share. As the International Business Times reports, it has only 77 percent of the U.S. market.
The EU also won a critical lawsuit last May when European citizens were granted a “right to be forgotten,” allowing people to appeal to Google to have information about themselves removed from its listings. The company has been forced to comply with the ruling to its continued discontent.
The EU even so far last November was to vote in a non-binding manner that it would be best to split Google up so that its dominating search engine could be splintered off. The probability of this happening remains low but it does represent a clear warning to Google that it should be wary of its actions in Europe.
Brittin told Politico: “As far as Europe is concerned: we get it. We understand that people here are not the same in their attitudes to everything as people in America.” He now intends to visit Brussels at least a month and wants Google to explain how it helps Europe’s economy, culture and small businesses.
The newly-appointed Brittin is obviously taking a much diplomatic approach to calming down the controversy in Europe. A new face as Google’s president for Europe, he seems to be bringing new transparency to assure Europeans that the Silicon Valley giant is willing to settle the anti-trust claims.
