EU Planning Formal DMA Charges Against Google

EU regulators are set to charge Google with breaching the Digital Markets Act over its failure to assuage concerns over allegedly preferencing its own services in search results, Reuters reported.

The move comes amid tensions with the US Trump administration, which has decried fines against US-based tech companies as a form of tariff.

The imminent charges relate to an investigation dating from March of last year over preferencing Google’s own services in search results, and not to a separate DMA probe involving limitations placed on app developers using Google’s Play Store, the report said.

Formal charges

The charges are likely to be sent to Google after decisions in the coming months on separate investigations into Apple and Facebook parent Meta Platforms that are more advanced, according to the report.

The probe in question revolves around whether Google’s search results favour its own vertical search engines for flights, shopping and hotels over third-party search tools.

Google has in recent months announced a series of changes to its search result formats in an effort to address demands from price-comparison sites, hotels, airlines and small retailers.

The majority of those competitors have argued the changes do not bring Google into line with the DMA.

The European Commission is also unhappy with Google’s threat to bring back simplified blue-link results if it cannot address competitors’ concerns, the report said.

In December Google ended a test in which it returned to basic “blue link” search results for hotel-related searches in some EU markets, in response to DMA compliance requests.

The results replaced visually richer results that typically include thumbnail photos of hotels along with pricing information and the location of the venue on a map.

Fine threat

Google’s EMEA competition director Olivier Bethell said the links decreased traffic to hotels by more than 10 percent and failed to increase traffic to third-party comparison websites.

The company faces fines of up to 10 percent of its global turnover if it fails to comply.

Google referred to a December comment by Bethell that the company is working with the Commission to find a balanced solution.

Bethell said at the time that more changes to search results could result in the removal of helpful features.

The EU’s other DMA investigation into Google involves limitations placed on developers using the Play Store that prevent them from informing users about offers outside the Play Store free of charge.