EU Commission Orders Google to Share Search Data with Rivals

The European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA) is taking another step towards promoting competition and innovation in the tech industry. The EU Commission has ordered Google to share anonymized search data with rival search engines, as well as provide better interoperability for companies using the Google Android operating system.

According to the ruling, competitors of artificial intelligence (AI) services will have equal access to features on Google's Android devices by January 2027. This includes AI chatbots with search features, which will be eligible for shared data. The EU Commission has developed a formula to calculate the price of the shared data, which it calls 'fair'.

The aim of these measures is to allow companies to offer European users a wider range of options when it comes to their AI services on Android and Search services. The ruling also focuses on ensuring that users can activate their preferred AI assistant via voice commands, similar to the 'Hey Google' command. This change is expected to begin in July 2027.