After four years of deliberation came the bombshell: the European Commission has ordered Google to pay a fine of €2.95 billion. The charge is “self-preferencing” in online advertising. And indeed, the tech giant gives itself advantages on both the buyer and the seller side. The ones who lose out are publishers and smaller outlets. A U.S. court will also soon decide whether Google must spin off its advertising subsidiary or change its rules.
MEP Volker Schnurrbusch of the ESN Group comments:
“The Commission would be well advised to wait for this proceeding and only then threaten fines. Google will decide only after the U.S. ruling whether to comply or rather pay.
For years, the EU has failed to establish a counterweight to the U.S. giants in the field of digital platforms. But instead of complaining and punishing, the EU should create a framework that enables a European Google or Meta. Instead, smart creatives are leaving Europe in droves because this very EU policy—together with high taxes and living costs—effectively drives them away.
We need fairness for other providers of online advertising, but above all we need Europe as a continent of opportunity—not of prohibitions!”
