EU wants to tax Google on copyright grounds

The EU is looking to tax Google whenever the US search giant uses or links to European copyrighted content.

This is just the latest act in the saga between the American company and the European Union and its member states. Dealing with accusations of copyright infringement and monopolistic behavior, Google has been in hot water for a long time.

Referring to copyright disputes, which have recently pushed Google News out of Spain, incoming Digital Commissioner, Günther Oettinger, said that an EU-wide tax on Google and other similar companies is definitely on the table, although this isn’t the primary focus, at least for now.

Oettinger dismissed the company’s suggested settlement for these disputes and said: “Google has to bring more offers to us, be ready for a really convincing compromise.”

Depending on your personal views, this may sound like big government squeezing companies, or a responsible administration trying to find balance between promoting competition and helping the little guy. In either case, one thing’s for certain: the EU is currently a complete mess when it comes to the single digital market.

Source: Euractiv