Brussels – The EU suspects Google of unlawful discrimination against media and publishing websites in its search results. Therefore, the responsible European Commission is starting the process, as it announced. Specifically, it is about Google’s policy which states that media content can be devalued in search results if their website contains commercial content from third parties.
Commission Vice President Teresa Ribera said: “We are concerned that Google’s policies result in news publishers not being treated fairly, appropriately and without discrimination in search results.” The review will be carried out to ensure that news publishers do not lose vital revenue at a difficult time for the industry.
The investigation will run for 12 months
The commission now wants to investigate whether Google implement fair and non-discriminatory access provisions for publishing websites in search – as required by EU digital law (Digital Markets Act, DMA). The Commission emphasized that the initiation of procedures does not constitute evidence of a violation. The investigation is expected to be completed within twelve months.
Already billions in fines against Google
If a violation occurs, there is a risk of a fine of up to ten percent of global annual turnover – if repeated, up to 20 percent. In 2024, Google will record annual sales of 336.35 billion euros. In very serious cases, Brussels can even order the company to be dissolved. In Brussels, the procedure is also seen as a signal to other technology companies: The EU wants to show that it is consistently enforcing its new digital laws – even against the most influential companies in the US.
Since 2018, the EU Commission has imposed competition fines of around eight billion euros on Google and parent company Alphabet – the highest penalty to date: more than four billion euros for a business with the Android operating system.
