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Google Fined €890 Million by EU Under Digital Markets Act Over Anti-Competitive Practices
EU regulators imposed an €890 million fine on Google for anti-competitive practices, marking the first major sanction under the Digital Markets Act.
EU regulators imposed an €890 million penalty on Google for giving preferential treatment to its own services, the first major sanction under the Digital Markets Act. The fine targets Google’s Play Store and search-engine practices and is intended to enforce competition and data-protection standards across digital learning platforms.
European Union competition authorities announced the fine on 23 July 2026, citing violations of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) that require “gatekeeper” platforms to provide fair access to their ecosystems [1][4]. The decision was issued from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Competition, headquartered in Brussels, Belgium [2][3].
The parties involved are Google LLC, the multinational technology company headquartered in Mountain View, California, and the European Union’s competition enforcement bodies, including the Directorate-General for Competition and the European Data Protection Board [1][3]. The penalty was levied after a two-year investigation that examined Google’s integration of its own services—particularly the Play app store and the Google Search engine—into the user experience of Android devices and web browsers used by schools and universities across the bloc [2][4].
Regulatory Context and Enforcement Process
The Digital Markets Act, which entered into force on 1 January 2024, designates large online platforms that meet specific turnover and user-base thresholds as “gatekeepers” and subjects them to a set of non-discrimination and data-access obligations [1][4]. Under the DMA, the European Commission can impose fines of up to 10% of a company’s global annual turnover for non-compliance [2]. Google’s global revenue for 2025 was reported at $282 billion, placing the €890 million fine well within the statutory maximum [3].
The investigation began in early 2024 after complaints from educational institutions that Google’s default search results and app-store rankings favored its own products, limiting visibility for competing educational tools [1]. The Commission issued a “pre-formal notice” in March 2025, granting Google a six-month window to address the concerns. Google submitted a remediation plan in September 2025, but the Commission concluded that the measures were insufficient and proceeded with formal proceedings, culminating in the July 2026 decision [4].
The investigation began in early 2024 after complaints from educational institutions that Google’s default search results and app-store rankings favored its own products, limiting visibility for competing educational tools [1].
The fine is accompanied by a remedial order requiring Google to amend its Android operating system and Play Store algorithms to ensure neutral treatment of third-party educational applications and to provide interoperable data-access interfaces for school-managed accounts [2][3]. Failure to comply within a 90-day period could trigger additional penalties of up to 5% of annual turnover per day of non-compliance [4].
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Read More →Specific Allegations Against Google’s Services
The Commission’s findings focus on two core areas: the Play Store’s ranking methodology and the integration of Google Search results into educational portals. In the Play Store, the investigation determined that Google systematically promoted its own learning apps—such as Google Classroom and Google Meet—by assigning them higher visibility scores, while demoting rival platforms that offered comparable functionality [1][3]. Internal documents obtained by the Commission indicated that the ranking algorithm incorporated “self-preferencing weightings” that were not disclosed to developers [2].
Regarding search, the DMA requires gatekeepers to treat all search results equally, regardless of the provider. The Commission identified that Google’s default search configuration on Android devices used in schools automatically displayed Google-owned educational resources at the top of query results, even when alternative sources were more relevant or locally preferred [4]. This practice limited the ability of schools to adopt open-source or regional learning platforms without additional configuration steps [1].
The fine also addresses Google’s handling of user data. Under the DMA, gatekeepers must allow users to port their data to competing services. The Commission found that Google’s “Google Account for Education” product bundled data-sharing restrictions that prevented schools from transferring student performance data to non-Google analytics tools without explicit consent, thereby constraining competition in the educational analytics market [2][3].
Immediate Implications for Educational Institutions and Digital Learning Platforms
The enforcement action is expected to create immediate operational changes for schools, universities, and other education providers that rely on Google’s ecosystem. Institutions will need to audit their device management policies to ensure that default search settings and app-store configurations comply with the new neutral-treatment requirements [1]. Many schools have already begun reviewing contracts with Google to assess potential exposure to additional compliance costs [4].
The EU’s data-portability order also enables schools to migrate student data to alternative learning management systems without extensive technical rework, potentially accelerating diversification of digital learning tools [4].
Third-party educational technology (EdTech) vendors anticipate increased market access as the mandated algorithm adjustments remove preferential bias toward Google’s own products [2]. Companies such as Moodle, Canvas, and smaller European startups have announced plans to launch targeted campaigns to capture users who were previously disadvantaged by the ranking system [3]. The EU’s data-portability order also enables schools to migrate student data to alternative learning management systems without extensive technical rework, potentially accelerating diversification of digital learning tools [4].
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Read More →For educators, the decision reinforces the importance of data-privacy compliance. The DMA’s emphasis on transparent data handling means that teachers and administrators must obtain explicit consent before sharing student information with any third-party service, and must retain the ability to delete or transfer that data upon request [1]. The fine underscores that non-compliance could result in further financial penalties, prompting institutions to adopt stricter governance frameworks for digital learning platforms [2].
Key Facts
What: EU imposes €890 million fine on Google for anti-competitive practices under the Digital Markets Act.
When: Decision announced on 23 July 2026 after a two-year investigation.
Impact: Schools and EdTech providers must adjust app-store rankings, search defaults, and data-portability practices to comply with new competition rules.
Impact: Schools and EdTech providers must adjust app-store rankings, search defaults, and data-portability practices to comply with new competition rules.
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Read More →Sources
- Google slapped with $1 billion fine under landmark EU digital law – CNBC
- Google Hit With $1 Billion Fine By EU Over Search Engine Practices – The New York Times
- EU fines Google $1B for breaking antitrust regulations – AP News
- Google hit with $1 billion EU fine, first under landmark rules – Reuters
