With search engine giant Google (News - Alert) everywhere and continuing to dominate the Web in the coming year, there are a number of major stories that will catch everyone’s attention according to CNET News. Although, Google will continue to strengthen its search engine and enhance emerging businesses like Google+ and manufacturing tables, it will be interesting to see how Google evolves under legal threats at home and abroad.

Based on some of these legal and competitive developments in the U.S. and abroad, CNET’s senior writer Jay Greene has identified five interesting stories concerning Google in 2012.

First thing to look for in 2012 is the antitrust decision in the U.S. and European Union (EU). According to Greene, antitrust regulators in the U.S. and EU are already investigating Google’s unfair practices of favoring its products in the search results. While the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is reviewing Google's strategies for building its search business, as well as the tactics used to incorporate search into its Android (News - Alert) mobile operating system, the European Commission is investigating whether Google has unfairly manipulated search results by lowering the rankings of competing services and elevating its own offerings in unpaid results, wrote Greene. Concurrently, in Asia, CNET reports that Korean Fair Trade Commission is also collecting data on Google’s unfair tactics to limit rival search engines on its mobile Android OS.

Though many of these legal battles will continue in 2012, reports indicate that the U.S. regulators will try to resolve the matter before the presidential elections. EU regulators are also hoping to make a verdict in 2012, according to Greene. Meanwhile, the European regulators are also reviewing Google’s pending bid to acquire Motorola Mobility, as per the CNET report.

Patent is another front where Google will face litigations from competitors like Microsoft, Apple and Oracle (News - Alert). According to Greene’s report, Oracle has already sued Google and Microsoft and Apple have either sued or are threatening to sue manufacturers who make devices that run Google's Android and Chrome operating systems. Google’s chief legal officer David Drummond posted on to his blog that there is an organized campaign against Android by Microsoft, Oracle, Apple and other companies, waged through bogus patents."

Making search more social is number three on this list. While Google will continue to integrate

Google properties and technologies, such as YouTube, videoconferencing, and Android mobile operating system, Google+ will continue to use knowledge gained from the social network to make search more relevant for users, wrote Greene.

Fourth on this Google stories to watch list is ongoing fragmentation of Android operating system. Although, Google’s Android has overtaken Research In Motion's BlackBerry (News - Alert) and Apple's iOS to become the popular smartphone operating system, proprietary vendor twist given to Android OS will result in customized versions of Android going forward, cautions Greene.

Backward compatibility will still be an issue, reports CNET.

Lastly, based on latest data from Web research firm StatCounter (News - Alert), Google Chrome is gaining momentum and will continue to gain share in 2012, wrote Greene. As per StatCounter’s market data, Chrome 15 was more widely used in last week of November as compared to Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 8. However, according to StatCounter, “when you add up all versions of IE in use, IE is by far the top browser worldwide.”