Brussels: The European Commission said the penalties are part of its wider effort to curb the dominance of major technology companies and create a fairer digital market. However, Brussels also noted that Google’s ongoing compliance talks had been constructive, reducing the likelihood of further sanctions for now.

The Commission imposed a first fine of €460 million after finding that Google gave preferential treatment to its own services in search results, including shopping, hotels, transport and sports. EU regulators said this violated competition rules under the Digital Markets Act.

A second fine of €430 million was issued over Google Play Store restrictions that prevented app developers from freely directing users to cheaper offers available through competing app stores or websites.

This marks the first fine imposed on Google under the Digital Markets Act. It is also the fifth and sixth competition-related penalty the company has faced in the European Union, bringing total EU fines against Google over nearly two decades to €10.38 billion.

EU Competition Commissioner Teresa Ribera said the Commission had a duty to ensure European laws were fully respected, adding that the Digital Markets Act was designed to provide a fair competitive environment for all companies.

Technology Commissioner Hina Virkkunen said the decisions were aimed at ensuring fair competition in digital markets and were not targeted at any specific company.

The Commission has given Google 60 days to comply with the decisions. The company must treat competitors fairly, avoid discrimination and allow app developers to direct users to purchase options outside the Google Play Store.

Google criticised the rulings and said it was considering an appeal before European courts. Kent Walker, Google’s head of global affairs, said the company would have to remove some features that European users rely on, including pricing and direct availability information for hotels, flights and restaurants. He also said Google would have to scale back some protections within the Play Store.

Walker argued that the measures would not create fair competition but would instead reduce product quality, saying regulation should improve services rather than weaken them.

Despite the fines, the Commission said its dialogue with Google had been constructive and that the company had made significant progress in implementing required changes. As a result, additional daily fines for non-compliance are considered unlikely at this stage.

Google has begun testing changes to how free services such as shopping, hotels and flights appear in search results. It is also making changes related to shopping ads and content displayed in services such as sports results. The Commission said it would continue reviewing these changes.

Brussels also said the principles in the decision may apply to Google’s AI services, including AI Overviews and AI Mode, as discussions on compliance continue.

The case comes amid rising tensions between the European Union and the United States over the regulation of major technology companies. U.S. President Donald Trump has criticised European measures against American firms and threatened tariffs in response, while U.S. lawmakers have also increased pressure on Brussels.

The fines are the third set of penalties issued under the Digital Markets Act, following EU sanctions against Apple and Meta in April last year.