The European Union’s top antitrust enforcer has signaled that a long-awaited decision on whether Google is breaking the bloc’s Digital Markets Act is imminent — even if she wouldn’t commit to a timeline.
What she said. “It will come,” Competition Commissioner Teresa Ribera told Dow Jones Newswires, adding that the cases are complicated and that the commission is committed to making decisions based on evidence and fair procedure.
The backdrop. The European Commission launched its probe into Google’s search business in March 2024 under the Digital Markets Act. The commission gave itself a soft 12-month deadline to wrap up — it has already fined Meta and Apple, but Google’s case remains unresolved nearly two years in.
The pressure is mounting.
18 lobby and civil society groups wrote to Ribera this month demanding clear remedies and a fine large enough to make non-compliance unprofitable
The groups warned the commission’s credibility is on the line, noting that Google commands over 90% of the EU search market
“Every day without a decision is a day that European businesses are systematically disadvantaged,” the letter said
Why we care. A ruling against Google under the Digital Markets Act could force significant changes to how Google operates its search business in Europe — potentially reshaping how ads are served, ranked, and priced in one of the world’s largest markets. If remedies include structural changes to search or ad tech, it could affect campaign performance, targeting capabilities, and competition dynamics across the board.
Advertisers with European audiences should watch this closely, as the outcome could ripple into how Google’s advertising ecosystem functions globally.
Meanwhile, this week. Ribera is in California meeting Sundar Pichai, Mark Zuckerberg, Sam Altman, and Amazon’s Andy Jassy — before heading to Washington D.C. for talks with the acting head of the Justice Department’s antitrust division.
The big picture. Google isn’t the only one in the crosshairs. The commission has additional open probes into how Google powers AI Overviews and ranks news publishers, and is separately investigating Meta over restrictions on rival chatbots using WhatsApp’s business software.
The bottom line. The EU has been slow to act on Google, but the political and public pressure is clearly building. When the decision does land, it could set a significant precedent for how the Digital Markets Act is enforced across the board.