Google faces EU order to widen rival access to Android and Search
EU decisions under the Digital Markets Act require Google to give competitors more access to Android and Google Search.
By Hana Yoshida · Markets Reporter
2 min read
The European Union has ordered Google to give rival AI assistants and search engines broader access to key parts of Android and Google Search. The decisions matter because they target two central Google platforms at a time when AI tools are becoming a new front in search and mobile software.
The European Commission handed down two decisions Thursday under the Digital Markets Act, the bloc’s competition rulebook for large digital platforms. The law applies to dominant services designated as “gatekeepers” and requires them to meet specific obligations intended to limit unfair control over digital markets, according to the Commission.
The orders focus on access for competitors. Under the EU’s action, Google must open important parts of Android and Search to rival AI assistants and search engines, according to the Commission’s announcement.
The Verge reported that the rulings could reduce Google’s control over two of the technology industry’s most important platforms. The decisions may also affect the future of Gemini, Google’s AI assistant, by giving competing assistants more room to operate on Android and around Google Search.
Digital Markets Act pressure
The proceedings came through technical regulatory work under the Digital Markets Act. The EU has used the law to set rules for large technology companies whose services act as gateways between businesses and users.
Google’s Android operating system and search business are among the company’s most influential products. Android gives Google a major role in mobile devices, while Google Search remains a key route through which users reach information and services online.
The Commission’s decisions place those products at the center of the EU’s wider effort to make major platforms more open to competitors. For rival search engines and AI assistants, the orders could create new opportunities to compete for users who otherwise encounter Google services by default or through tight integration with Android and Search, according to The Verge.
The decisions also sharpen regulatory pressure on Google in Europe. The company must comply with the EU’s digital antitrust rules as the bloc continues to apply the Digital Markets Act to the largest technology platforms.
The Commission’s action does not end the broader fight over control of search, mobile software and AI assistants. It does, however, mark another step in Europe’s attempt to limit the power of gatekeeper platforms and require more access for rivals inside systems that shape how people use the internet.
This story draws on original reporting from The Verge.