Google has suffered a fresh setback in its long-running legal battle with European regulators after an adviser to the European Union’s top court backed the bloc’s €1.49 billion ($1.7 billion) antitrust fine against the US technology giant. The development challenges a 2024 ruling that had overturned the penalty, bringing Google’s controversial advertising practices back under judicial scrutiny.
The opinion, delivered on Thursday, November 12, by Advocate General Juliane Kokott, concerns Google’s alleged abuse of its dominant position in the online search advertising market through its AdSense platform. The European Commission had originally imposed the fine in 2019, accusing the company of using restrictive contractual provisions to limit competition.
Credits: Reuters
Why the European Commission fined Google
The dispute dates back to 2006, when Google allegedly began incorporating restrictive clauses into agreements with third-party publishers using its AdSense search advertising service. According to the European Commission, these provisions prevented publishers from displaying advertisements from competing search advertising providers on their websites.
The Commission argued that the contractual restrictions effectively limited competitors’ ability to access valuable advertising space, strengthening Google’s position in the online search advertising market.
The alleged practices continued until 2016, when Google removed the contested clauses from its publisher agreements. However, the European Commission maintained that the restrictions had caused significant harm to competition over a decade.
In March 2019, the regulator imposed a €1.49 billion penalty, accusing Google of abusing its market dominance and restricting the ability of rival advertising platforms to compete for publisher partnerships.
Why Google’s 2024 legal victory is under threat
Google initially secured a major legal victory in September 2024, when the EU’s General Court annulled the European Commission’s decision to impose the fine.
The lower tribunal questioned aspects of the Commission’s assessment, particularly its evaluation of the duration and competitive impact of the contractual restrictions. The ruling represented a significant setback for European regulators seeking to hold major technology companies accountable for alleged anti-competitive conduct.
The European Commission subsequently appealed the decision to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), which is based in Luxembourg.
Advocate General Kokott has now sided with the Commission’s position, arguing that the General Court applied excessively demanding requirements when examining the duration of the alleged infringement.
She also said the lower tribunal had failed to sufficiently connect its conclusions on the duration of the practices with the broader assessment of Google’s dominant market position.
Her opinion suggests that the General Court’s reasoning in overturning the penalty may have been legally flawed, potentially reopening the door for the original fine to be reinstated.
Credits: Quartz
What happens next in Google’s antitrust battle?
Although the Advocate General’s opinion is not legally binding, it carries considerable weight in proceedings before the CJEU. The court usually follows such recommendations, although it remains free to reach a different conclusion.
The Luxembourg-based court is expected to deliver its final ruling in 2027. Its decision will determine whether the European Commission’s original €1.49 billion penalty can stand or whether the lower tribunal’s decision to annul it will remain in place.
For Google, the case represents another chapter in its increasingly complicated relationship with European competition authorities. The AdSense penalty was among six antitrust fines imposed by the European Union against the company, collectively amounting to approximately €10.38 billion over nearly two decades.
The outcome could also reinforce the European Commission’s broader efforts to scrutinise the business practices of dominant technology companies, particularly in markets where control over digital advertising infrastructure can influence competition.
With the final judgment still pending, Google’s 2024 courtroom victory is now under renewed pressure, highlighting how its European antitrust battles continue long after the original practices have ended. The ruling could have wider implications for Google’s advertising business and future regulatory scrutiny across Europe.
