EU slaps Google with €890 million fine for breaching the Digital Markets Act
NewsFriday, 24 July 2026 at 20:01
The European Commission has fined Google a total of €890 million for two violations of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Brussels says Google unfairly favored its own services in Google Search results and restricted app developers from pointing users to cheaper payment options outside the Play Store.
The penalty includes a €460 million fine for self-preferencing in Google Search and €430 million for constraints imposed on app developers in Google Play.
Google gave its own services top billing in Search
The European Commission concludes that Google highlights its own services—like Google Shopping, Hotels, Flights, transport, and sports results—more prominently than competing offerings.
Under the DMA, so-called “gatekeepers” can’t privilege their own products over rivals. The Commission found Google broke this rule by placing its services at the top of results and boosting visibility through bold visuals, filters, and other prominent placements.
As a result, competing comparison sites and online services don’t get a fair shot at reaching users, according to Brussels.
Google Play also crossed the line
Beyond Search, Google received a second fine for how it treats app developers in the Play Store.
The Digital Markets Act requires that developers can inform users, free of charge, about alternative payment options outside the Play Store—via their own websites or other app stores. These alternatives are often cheaper because they avoid Google’s commissions.
The Commission found, however, that Google imposed technical and contractual limits on developers promoting these alternatives. It also says the fees Google continues to charge after initial customer acquisition exceed what the DMA allows.
60 days to comply
The European Commission has ordered Google to end the violations within 60 days.
That means Google must:
- treat third parties fairly in Google Search;
- allow app developers to freely communicate external offers;
- let users switch to alternative payment methods without restrictions.
If Google misses the deadline, the Commission can impose additional periodic penalties of up to 5 percent of the company’s global daily turnover.
AI Overviews and AI Mode under active review
Notably, the European Commission says Google is already testing changes to how Shopping, Hotels, Flights, and other services appear in Search.
Google has also submitted proposals on how the same DMA principles will apply to AI Overviews and AI Mode, the new AI features in Google Search.
The Commission calls the talks “constructive” and will assess the proposed fixes in the coming period—signaling that AI-generated results are fully covered by EU competition rules.
A key precedent for AI-powered search
The decision reaches beyond classic Google Search. AI search engines increasingly present direct, generated answers that can blend in their own products, travel services, stores, or commercial partners.
With this ruling, the Commission sends a clear message: the same fair-competition rules apply when results are assembled by artificial intelligence.
For Google, that means future AI features must not only work technically, but also prove they treat competing services neutrally.
Google can still appeal
Google can appeal both decisions to the Court of Justice of the European Union. In the meantime, the European Commission will monitor the rollout of the required measures and continued compliance with the Digital Markets Act.
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