Google is poised to face another regulatory onslaught from European Union watchdogs, potentially leading to a substantial fine and a mandate to alter its business model unless the US tech giant swiftly takes action to elevate the visibility of rival products across its extensive search empire.
EU officials are preparing to file formal charges against the Alphabet Inc. unit under the bloc's Digital Markets Act, specifically targeting how the company presents rival product results across its diverse search services, such as Google Flights and Google Hotels.
If Google fails to comply with these regulations, the company could face hefty penalties of up to 10% of global annual revenue, if it fails to comply with the rules and takes rapid action to give more prominence to rivals across its sprawling search empire.
The EU's preliminary findings on Google's compliance with regulations may be issued by the end of October, though this timeline could be affected by the upcoming transition of top officials at the European Commission. Google is working to address the EU's concerns, having met with commission officials this week.
One proposal under consideration involves redesigning Google’s search tabs to provide users with options to navigate to alternative search platforms or directly to suppliers like hotel and airline websites. A final decision on the matter is expected by the end of March next year.
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