Alphabet Unit Google violates EU rules aimed at checking the power of Big Tech after it failed to address EU antitrust regulators' concerns and their rivals after a proposed change in search results You will be charged with doing so. .
The European Commission moves amid tensions with President Trump, who opposes EU regulations and sides with US tech giants who criticize fines as a form of tariffs. This has sparked concerns that the EU watchdog could be mitigated with big technology.
The European Commission has been investigating Google for potential violations of digital market law since March last year.
One study focuses on whether Google prefers vertical search engines like Google Shopping, Google Flights, Google Hotels and other vertical search engines over its rivals, and whether it discriminates against third-party services in Google search results.
The pressing accusations have something to do with the matter, people said.
EU competition watchdog declined to comment. Google mentioned a December blog post by director EMEA competition Oliver Bethell.
Bethell said more changes to Google's search results format to soothe its rivals could remove certain useful features.
In recent months, Tech Giant has announced a series of changes to the results format search format to address conflicting demands from price comparison sites, hotels, airlines and small retailers. Most of them rejected the proposal, saying it was not DMA compliant.
EU antitrust regulators are also not satisfied with Google's threat of retrieving a blue link in search results if they can't resolve their rival's demands, one source said.
The DMA has either banned Google from supporting its own products and services on its platform or faced a fine of 10% of global annual revenue.
DMA fees are likely to be sent to Google in the coming months following separate investigations from Apple and Meta platforms.
Other DMA research aims to limit the potential restrictions that prevent app developers from notifying users of offers outside the Google App Store for free.
