EU fines Alphabet €890 million over Search and Play Store rules
The European Commission says Google favored its own services in Search and restricted Android developers’ payment options.
By Maya Lindqvist · Senior Technology Correspondent
3 min read
The European Commission has fined Alphabet €890 million, about $1 billion, over two findings that Google failed to comply with the Digital Markets Act. The decision matters because it requires Google to change how Search treats rival services and how Android developers can point users to payment options outside the Play Store.
The Commission said Thursday that Google gave its own Shopping, Hotels and Flights services favorable placement in Google Search results. That finding led to a €460 million penalty, according to the Commission.
A separate €430 million fine concerns Play Store rules. The Commission said Google restricted Android app developers from freely directing customers to alternative payment systems, including options that may cost less.
Google faces a 60-day deadline
The Commission said Google has 60 days to bring its practices into line with EU requirements. If it does not, the company could face additional periodic penalty payments, according to the regulator.
For Search, the Commission said Google must treat outside services in a fair and non-discriminatory way. For the Play Store, the regulator said Google must let Android developers promote offers to users both inside and outside Google’s app marketplace.
The penalties stem from the EU’s Digital Markets Act, a law aimed at large online platforms that regulators classify as gatekeepers. The Commission said the Google findings involve two separate areas of non-compliance under that law.
Case followed a long investigation
The Commission announced the fines more than two years after opening a non-compliance investigation into Google under the DMA. The Verge reported that the EU first opened that investigation in March 2024 and issued a preliminary finding against Google in March 2025.
Google had time to address the Commission’s concerns before the final penalties, according to The Verge. Reuters reported in May 2026 that the Commission gave Google additional time after saying an earlier company proposal was “simply not strong enough.”
The Verge reported that Google tested several changes to its Search presentation in Europe while trying to comply with the DMA. Those changes included removing the Google Flights widget for EU Search users and using an updated results layout that gave more visibility to links from third-party comparison sites.
The Commission’s order goes further by requiring policy changes across both Search and the Play Store. The agency said the remedies must let competing services and Android developers reach users without unfair limits imposed by Google’s own products or marketplace rules.
Alphabet, Google’s parent company, is the named target of the €890 million fine. The Commission’s action adds to the EU’s use of the DMA to force large technology companies to alter product design and business rules in Europe.
This story draws on original reporting from The Verge.