Google pitches EU on adtech fixes to dodge breakup after €2.95B slap

Steven

Google pitches EU on adtech fixes to dodge breakup after €2.95B slap

Summary

Google has submitted a compliance proposal to the European Commission after being fined €2.95 billion for distorting competition in the adtech market. The company was given 60 days to propose measures and has done so, while also stating it disagrees with the Commission’s decision and plans to appeal.

The proposals aim to avoid a structural break-up and include options such as allowing publishers to set different minimum prices for different bidders within Google Ad Manager and improving interoperability across Google’s adtech tools to give publishers and advertisers more choice. The European Commission says it will analyse the plan to see whether it ends self-preferencing and the inherent conflicts of interest; it has previously signalled that divestment may be necessary.

The submission came as the Commission also opened an investigation into a possible breach of the Digital Markets Act relating to alleged demotion of media publishers in search results. Google says it will continue to cooperate with the EC while appealing the antitrust ruling.

Key Points

  • Google received a €2.95 billion fine for favouring its own display ad technology and distorting adtech competition.
  • The company had 60 days to propose compliance measures and has submitted a plan while announcing it will appeal the EC decision.
  • Proposed fixes include publisher control over minimum prices for different bidders in Ad Manager and greater interoperability of Google ad tools.
  • The European Commission previously indicated it sees a structural remedy — potentially divestment — as likely necessary, but will first assess Google’s proposal.
  • The EC is also probing a possible Digital Markets Act breach over alleged demotion of publishers in Google Search.

Why should I read this?

Because this could change the ad market and how publishers get paid — fast. Google is trying to avoid being forced to sell parts of its ad stack, and the EC is signalling it won’t shy away from structural remedies. If you work in media, advertising or platform regulation, this isn’t just another fine: it’s a potential reshuffle of the whole adtech supply chain. We’ve done the legwork so you can skip the long read and get the gist.

Source

Source: https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2025/11/14/google_antitrust_eu_remedy/