EU Opens DMA Probe Into Google Over Alleged Demotion of Media Content

Overview

• European Commission officials announced on November 13 a formal investigation into Google’s search practices under the Digital Markets Act.
• Regulators are examining whether a 2024 measure meant to curb ranking manipulation pushed down externally provided commercial content on trusted media sites.
• The probe focuses on potential lost revenue opportunities for news publishers if sponsored or partner content was uniformly downgraded in search results.
• The investigation proceeds under DMA fairness obligations that apply to designated gatekeepers operating core platform services in the EU.
• Google emphasized the importance of search reliability and argued the investigation’s direction is mistaken, warning it could harm European users.