EU hits Google with record €2.95 billion fine for abusing dominance in advertising

The European Commission on Friday slapped Google with a €2.95 billion fine, accusing the U.S. tech giant of abusing its dominance in online advertising technology. The decision marks one of the EU’s toughest actions yet against Big Tech and comes against the backdrop of growing US–EU tensions over digital regulation.

EU antitrust officials said Google illegally gave preferential treatment to its own ad exchange, “AdX,” while leveraging its control over both publisher ad servers and ad-buying tools. The case was triggered by a complaint from the European Publishers Council.

The fine was originally scheduled for earlier this week but was delayed after EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic raised concerns that the move could inflame U.S. President Donald Trump, who has threatened retaliatory tariffs on European cars if Brussels continues to push back against American tech companies.

“Google must now come forward with a serious remedy to address its conflicts of interest, and if it fails to do so, we will not hesitate to impose strong remedies,” EU Competition Commissioner Teresa Ribera said, stressing that digital markets “must be grounded in trust and fairness.”

The Commission has given Google 60 days to end the practices deemed anti-competitive. The probe into Google’s ad tech business was first opened in June 2021.

Google rejected the ruling. “This decision is unjustified, and the changes demanded will hurt thousands of European businesses by making it harder for them to make money,” said Lee-Anne Mulholland, the company’s vice president. Google confirmed it would appeal the fine.

The company also faces intensifying scrutiny in the United States. Earlier this week, a U.S. federal judge ruled that Google holds an illegal monopoly in online search and ordered structural changes to its search business, though he stopped short of forcing a divestiture of the Chrome browser, as prosecutors had sought.