Amit Singhal of Google disputes antitrust claims

A Q&A with Amit Singhal, the computer scientist who oversees the algorithms that rank results in Google's search engine.

He says that every tweak of the software is driven by users. They vote for or against changes to the world's dominant information tool with millions of mouse clicks every day. The statement goes to the heart of the antitrust debate swirling around the Internet giant, as competitors and critics argue the company is biasing results in its favor, steering customers to Google products at the expense of theirs. The European Commission is investigating a handful of such complaints against Google in a wide-reaching antitrust inquiry. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice is reportedly prepared to block the company's acquisition of ITA Software as originally proposed, over concerns about the competitive impact. A handful of other companies and officials, including the Texas attorney general, are also considering or investigating antitrust claims against the search giant.