EU Commission fines Google €890 million for DMA violations

The European Commission has fined Google 890 million euros for violating the European Union's Digital Markets Act, marking the first time the U.S. tech giant has been penalized under the landmark competition law. The fine, announced on Thursday, July 23, 2026, addresses two separate violations: systematically favoring Google's own services in search results and unfairly restricting how app developers can communicate with users.

The Commission levied a 460 million euro fine for what it termed "self-preferencing," where Google's search engine gave prominent placement and enhanced visuals to its own services like Google Shopping, Google Hotels, and Google Flights over equivalent rival offerings. A separate fine of 430 million euros was imposed for "anti-steering" practices, where Google prevented app developers from informing users about cheaper offers available outside the Google Play store or about alternative payment methods.

In its ruling, the Commission stated that Google's actions harmed businesses offering similar services by not granting them equal prominence and restricted competition within the app ecosystem. Alongside the financial penalty, regulators ordered Google to...