Google Dumbs Down Search Results in Europe Amid €890 Million Fine
Google has made significant changes to its search functionality in Europe following an €890 million fine imposed by the European Commission. The company acknowledged that this overhaul, which saw the top positions on search results pages being ceded to third-party vertical search engines specializing in hotels, aviation, and restaurants, represents 'the largest degradation of service quality in its 29-year search history.'
The changes were made to comply with the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) and antitrust remediation requirements. Google's own aggregation cards no longer feature real-time pricing, and local businesses now appear behind online intermediary platforms.
A report by Phoenix New Media Technology found that this overhaul has resulted in a 30% decline in free direct booking traffic for European businesses. The company must either repurchase the previously free direct booking traffic or transact through platforms, ceding a portion of commissions.