Google Hit with $1 Billion Fine, Triggers New Wave of EU Lawsuits

Google has faced another wave of lawsuits from smaller rivals in Europe after being fined $1 billion by the European Commission for breaching the Digital Markets Act (DMA).

The commission claimed that Google gave preferential treatment to its own services, including shopping and hotels results, over those of third parties in search results.

As a result, Google was ordered to dismantle these preferential treatments and make structural changes to its advertising, search, and app ecosystems.

This is not the first time Google has faced fines from the European Commission - it has been hit with more than EUR10 billion in fines in the past decade, equivalent to over $11 billion.

Many of these cases are still in appeal, but smaller rivals have taken advantage of this decision to file lawsuits against Google for market abuse and breach of antitrust rules.