Google Fined Nearly €3 Billion by EU Over Online Advertising Practices
Google has been hit with a €2.95 billion (£2.5 billion) fine by the European Union after regulators ruled that the tech giant abused its dominant position in the online advertising market.
The European Commission announced the penalty on Friday, accusing Google of using its power in the ad tech sector to unfairly promote its own services while disadvantaging competitors. The case focused on Google’s advertising exchange platform, AdX, which determines where and how online adverts are displayed in real-time auctions.
According to the Commission, Google deliberately gave preferential treatment to its own platform, making it harder and more expensive for rival exchanges and publishers to compete. This behaviour, regulators said, drove up costs and reduced revenues for competitors — a burden that may have ultimately been passed on to consumers.
“This is the third time Google has broken the rules,” said Teresa Ribera, the Commission’s executive vice president. “Given its repeated misconduct, we increased the fine to reflect the seriousness of this breach.”
The ruling also orders Google to stop the practices immediately and gives the company 60 days to outline changes to its operations. If it fails to comply, the Commission warned it could impose its own solution, including the possibility of forcing Google to sell parts of its ad tech business.
Google to Appeal
Google strongly rejected the ruling and confirmed it would appeal the decision.
“This fine is unjustified and the required changes will hurt thousands of European businesses that rely on our services to generate revenue,” said Lee-Anne Mulholland, Google’s global head of regulatory affairs. “There’s nothing anti-competitive about providing tools for ad buyers and sellers, especially when there are more alternatives than ever before.”
The case adds to mounting global scrutiny of Google’s dominance in digital advertising and search. It also comes at a sensitive time for EU-U.S. trade relations.
Political Backlash
The decision drew sharp criticism from U.S. President Donald Trump, who blasted the fine as “very unfair” in a post on social media.
“The European Union must stop this practice against American companies immediately,” Trump wrote, adding that his administration was considering an investigation into European regulatory actions that could lead to new tariffs on EU goods.
The U.S. government has also filed its own lawsuits against Google over its control of the online advertising market, though Trump has recently intensified his criticism of European regulators for targeting American tech firms.
Earlier this week, the European Commission denied suggestions that it had delayed Friday’s announcement to avoid escalating trade tensions with Washington.
A Pattern of Fines
The nearly €3 billion penalty is among the largest ever issued by the EU against a technology company.
In 2018, Google was fined €4.34 billion (£3.9 billion) for using its Android mobile operating system to reinforce its dominance in search and mobile services. Regulators said Friday’s higher fine reflected Google’s repeated violations of competition rules.
Google now faces growing pressure to overhaul its advertising business as regulators on both sides of the Atlantic push for more accountability in Big Tech.
