The European Commission has fined Google €890 million ($1 billion) for violating the EU’s Digital Markets Act. According to the Commission’s decision, published on July 23, 2026, Google supported its services in Google Search and limited how app developers could direct users to low-cost purchasing options outside Google Play.
The fines include €460 million for search self-preference and €430 million for app store steering practices. Google must remedy these violations within 60 days or risk paying periodic fines of up to 5% of its worldwide turnover.
Google can appeal against this decision. The Commission acknowledged that Google is testing changes to both practices and considers these efforts to be substantial progress toward compliance.
Commission details Google’s DMA violations
The Commission determined that Google prioritizes its own services such as shopping, hotels, transportation and sports results over third-party offerings in Google Search. DMA expects gatekeepers to treat third-party services fairly in search rankings rather than to prioritize their own.
The second breach involves Google Play. The Commission found that Google restricts app developers from freely communicating offers and concluding contracts with users through their preferred distribution channels, including third-party app stores.
This limits developers’ ability to direct users to lower-priced purchasing options outside of Google’s payment system. A gatekeeper was designated for Google Search in September 2023, and the Commission opened a non-compliance investigation in March 2024.
“Google has failed to effectively comply with the Digital Markets Act, and today we have taken a decisive but balanced enforcement action, sanctioning these violations,” said Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice President of Clean, Just and Competitive Transitions.
Ribera said, “The best products should succeed because they are better, not because they are owned by the company that runs the search engine. And European consumers have a right to be told by app developers where to sign up for the best offers, even if the app store owner doesn’t get a cut.”
Compliance timeline and penalty risk for Google
The Commission ordered Google to cease both violations within 60 days. If it fails to comply within that period, it faces periodic penalty payments of up to 5% of its average daily turnover worldwide.
The Commission said Google has started testing changes to its search results display and has updated its steering terms. Although these actions represent substantial progress toward compliance, they were insufficient to avoid penalties for past DMA violations.
The €890 million fine is the latest in a series of fines imposed on Google in Europe over the past year.
In September, the Commission fined Google €2.95 billion ($3.5 billion) for abusing its dominance in the digital advertising technology market to favor its own adtech services.
The same month, the French data protection authority fined the company €325 million ($378 million) for placing ads among Gmail users’ emails without their consent and violating cookie rules.
In early July, Google lost a final appeal against a €4.1 billion ($4.7 billion) antitrust fine over the use of Android to promote Google Search and the Chrome browser.
What does the decision mean for users and what happens next
For Android app developers in the EU, the decision addresses rules limiting users to external purchasing options. If Google implements compliance changes within 60 days, developers will have more flexibility in communicating alternative offers and payment channels, including purchase links outside of Google Play’s billing system.
There are some practical steps developers and businesses affected by rankings and operating practices should take:
- Review current Google Play distribution agreements against the specific steering restrictions identified by the Commission, as those terms are the subject of the compliance order.
- Monitor changes announced by Google to the steering terms over the next 60 days, as permitted forms of external offer communications depend on final implementation.
- For businesses that rely on Google search visibility, track changes Google is testing to the placement of its shopping, hotel, transportation, and sports results that may impact third-party rankings.
- Document any competitive harm from the practices identified, as the Commission’s findings may support related complaints or claims.
Google has not confirmed whether it will appeal the decision, although the Commission said that option is available. The final form of Google’s compliance changes to search rankings and play steering has not been confirmed, and whether those changes satisfy the DMA will depend on the Commission’s assessment at the end of the 60-day period.
Further penalty payments will be made only if the Commission determines that Google has not eliminated the violations within that window.
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