The European Commission fined Google €890 million ($1 billion) on July 23, 2026, in the first-ever penalty against the company under the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA). The fine splits into €460 million for self-preferencing Google's own services — hotels, shopping, transport — over rivals in search results, and €430 million for restricting how app developers steer Google Play users to offers outside the store.
"The best products should succeed because they're better, not because they're owned by the company running the search engine," said Teresa Ribera, the Commission's Executive Vice-President. Google now has 60 days to end the violations or face additional daily penalties of up to 5% of its worldwide annual turnover; the company is reportedly in talks with regulators and may appeal.
The ruling is a major test of the DMA's enforcement teeth against a US tech giant, and could reshape how Google Search and Play Store surface competitors' offers across the EU.