(Telecompaper) The European Commission is nearing a settlement with Google to end the investigation into anti-competitive practices on the company's search services. Joaquin Almunia, European commissioner for competition affairs, told a a hearing at the European Parliament that the new commitments proposed by Google go much further to addressing the competition concerns, suggesting the internet company may be able to avoid fines and reach a settlement. The EC first tested proposals from Google with the market in April, but received largely negative responses. Google has since improved its offer of binding commitments, which Almunia said the EC had been negotiating with the company up til the day prior to the hearing. He said the "new proposal more appropriately addresses the need for any commitments to be able to cover future developments", so the commitments would cover search on any kind of device, in text or voice commands. An independent monitoring trustee would be put in place to provide assistance to the EC in ensuring that Google meets all the commitments. Almunia said the significant improvements in Google's offer gives him confidence that it can be resolved through a settlement, rather than pursuing anti-trust sanctions against the company. The EC will negotiate the final details in the coming weeks, and the proposal will then be put to market consultation again. A final decision could follow next spring, the commissioner said.