EU readies record DMA fine against Google for search self-preferencing

The European Commission is finalizing a Digital Markets Act penalty against Alphabet's Google in the "high triple-digit million euro" range — the largest fine ever issued under the law — for ranking Google Shopping, Flights, and Hotels above rival comparison services in Search.techtimes +1 Germany's Handelsblatt, confirmed by Reuters, reports a formal decision is expected before the Commission's August recess, ending more than two years of proceedings.ppc +1 The fine would surpass the €500 million levied on Apple and €200 million on Meta in 2025.ppc

Two years of rejected remedies

The case turns on Article 6(5) of the DMA, which bars designated gatekeepers from giving their own vertical services preferential placement.techtimes The Commission opened proceedings within weeks of the law becoming binding in March 2024 and issued preliminary findings on March 19, 2025, concluding Google's ranking practices violated the requirement for "transparent, fair and non-discriminatory" treatment of third-party services.techtimes +1 Google rolled out more than 20 modifications to European search in November 2024, but a coalition of price-comparison sites called them insufficient, and Brussels agrees.ppc

Google has framed the demanded changes as harmful to users. "The changes we've already made to Search under the DMA represent the biggest downgrade in the product's history, creating a second-rate experience for Europeans to the benefit of a few self-interested complainants," a company spokesperson told Reuters.mashable Alphabet has signaled it will appeal any decision to the EU's General Court in Luxembourg.computing

A fraction of the legal ceiling

The DMA permits fines of up to 10% of global annual turnover for a first violation, which on Alphabet's roughly $350 billion 2024 revenue would clear $35 billion.ppc +1 A penalty in the €700–999 million range is a deliberate fraction of that ceiling.ppc Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier said Brussels is "more interested in finding future compliance solutions with Google than simply issuing a fine," but added the Commission "will not hesitate to move to the next steps as soon as possible."ppc

Geopolitics delayed the decision

Reporting by Der Standard indicates the file has been internally complete for months, with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen holding back the announcement to avoid antagonizing Washington after a hard-won EU–US customs deal.ppc When Brussels imposed a €2.95 billion adtech fine on Google in September 2025, President Donald Trump called it "very unfair" on Truth Social and threatened retaliatory measures, characterizing EU tech penalties as de facto tariffs.ppc Google's accumulated EU competition fines now exceed €11 billion across the Shopping, Android, AdSense, and adtech cases.techtimes

AI Overviews next in the crosshairs

Handelsblatt reports the Commission also views Google's Gemini-powered AI Overviews — which place an AI summary above organic results — as a new form of self-preferencing, and Google's proposed remedies on that front have not satisfied regulators.techtimes +1 Parallel DMA proceedings opened in November and December 2025 target the alleged demotion of news publishers and Google's use of publisher content to train its AI products, with a separate decision on Android access for rival AI assistants expected by July 2026.techtimes