Overview
- Advocate General Juliane Kokott told the Court of Justice of the European Union that the General Court erred when it annulled the European Commission’s 2019 €1.49 billion fine against Google for AdSense contracts.
- The General Court overturned the Commission’s penalty in 2024 after finding problems with how the Commission assessed Google’s contractual restrictions on publishers.
- Kokott highlighted that Google removed the contested contract clauses in 2016 and recommended that any penalty be reconsidered with that timing in mind, which could lead to a smaller fine if the case returns to the lower court.
- The Advocate General’s opinion is advisory and not binding, but it is often influential and increases the likelihood the CJEU will remand the case or reach a different legal conclusion than the 2024 ruling.
- A ruling that reopens or alters the AdSense judgment would tighten EU scrutiny of platform contracts, affect publishers and rival ad firms that compete with Google, and could shape legal standards for similar Big Tech antitrust cases.