Executives at Rupert Murdoch's News Corp have written to the European Commissioner for Competition, Joaqun Almunia, urging the EU to take a tougher stance with Google.
In the letter, the Dirty Digger's underlings accuse Google of "willing to exploit its dominant market position to stifle competition". The letter stated that "cynical management" had replaced the original vision of Google's founders.
The letter, written by News Corp chief executive Robert Thomson said Google was a "platform for piracy and the spread of malicious networks" whose power "increases with each passing day".
As reported by IT Pro earlier this month, the EU has demanded more concessions from Google over its dominance in search and advertising. Thomson said Google "must do more to ensure that rights are respected and that its powerful search platform is not abused to eliminate competition".
"Your decision to reconsider Google's settlement offer comes at a crucial moment in the history of the free flow of information and of a healthy media in Europe and beyond," said Thomson.
According to reports by the Financial Times, Jeff Jarvis, a journalism professor, said News Corp was "trying to eliminate competition by hiding behind the skirts of government ironic for conservative corporations that abhor big government in any other circumstance".
Almunia said in May he wanted to close the case against Google before the end of his five-year term, but this will now not happen and the case passes onto his successor, former Danish economy minister Margrethe Vestager, who takes up her post in November.
Vestager will have to decide then whether to continue settlement talks with the search firm or drop the case.
