Open Letter to Executive Vice President Vestager and Commissioner Breton: Google Search is not Compliant with the DMA. We Urge the European Commission to Take Action

This week marks a significant milestone for digital markets in Europe, as the deadline for the designated gatekeepers to adhere to the Digital Markets Act (DMA) has finally come. On this important occasion for European businesses and consumers, eu travel tech sent a letter to Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager and Commissioner Thierry Breton, raising pressing concerns regarding Google’s compliance with the DMA’s ban on self-preferencing under Article 6.5.

The DMA was designed to foster a competitive and fair digital landscape across Europe. Article 6.5, in particular, aims to eliminate self-preferencing practices that can skew competition and limit consumer choice. This provision is especially vital in the context of Google Search, which plays a pivotal role in how consumers access information online.

eu travel tech’s letter highlights that, despite the critical nature of the DMA and extensive consultations with business users, Google’s proposed solutions for Article 6.5 fall markedly short of what is necessary to ensure compliance with the new rules. Google continues to favor its own services on the Search Engine Results Page (SERP), undermining competition. In travel search, this includes the display of Google’s comparison products for Hotels, Flights, Things to do, Trains, and Vacation rentals with units that are more prominent, interactive and rich than any other search result.

It is imperative for Google to propose new, DMA-compliant solutions for its search practices. Should Google continue to fall short of compliance, we urge the European Commission to do everything in its power to ensure that the DMA is enforced.

We look forward to seeing progress on this crucial matter for European digital markets and consumers.