The European Union has imposed a heavy new fine on Alphabet, Google’s parent company, for violating the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The European Commission has announced fines for a total of 890 million euros, divided into two separate provisions concerning the Google search engine and the Play Store.
The first fine, amounting to 460 million euros, concerns the way in which Google favored its services within the search results. According to Brussels, products such as Google Shopping, Google Hotels and Google Flights have received preferential treatment compared to competing services, thus penalizing competition and limiting the ability of users to choose alternatives.
The second fine, worth 430 million euros, instead affects the policies of the Google Play Store. The Commission believes that Google prevented Android developers from freely directing users to alternative payment systems, limiting the possibility of promoting offers outside the store and forcing developers to use the platform’s payment system.
In addition to the economic sanctions, Brussels has given Google a 60-day deadline to change its practices. In particular, the company will have to ensure that third-party services are treated in search results in a fair and non-discriminatory way, while on the Play Store it will have to allow developers to freely inform users about offers available even outside the Google ecosystem.
The decision comes after a long procedure started by the European Commission over two years ago. A preliminary assessment highlighting the alleged violations of the DMA was published in March 2025. Google subsequently presented some proposals to comply with the EU’s requests, also obtaining an extension in May 2026, but Brussels deemed them insufficient.
The Digital Markets Act is the European regulation designed to limit the power of large digital platforms considered “gatekeepers”, imposing rules aimed at guaranteeing greater competition and freedom of choice for consumers and companies. Violations can result in fines of up to 10% of the affected company’s global annual revenue. In the case of Google, which reported revenues of around $400 billion in 2025, the theoretical maximum fine could have reached $40 billion.